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ABACA

A CORDAGE FIBER

Brittain B. Robinson
Falba L. Johnson

Agriculture Monograph Ho. 21
UNITED STATES DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE

Historic, archived document

Do not assume content reflects current
scientific knowledge, policies, or practices.

ABACA

A CORDAGE FIBER

BrittainB. Robinson
Formerly Principal Agronomist
and
FalbaL. Johnson
Formerly Information Specialist

Division of Cotton and Other Fiber Crops

and Diseases

Bureau of Plant Industry, Soils, and Agricultural

Engineering
Agricultural Research Administration

This study was made with the support of the
Navy Department, Office of Naval Research and
the Bureau of Ships . The authors wish to express
their appreciationfor the interest and assistance
rendered by the Office of Naval Research and the
Bureau of Ships during the progress of the work.

Agriculture Monograph No. 21
UNITED STATES DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE
Beltsville, Maryland
October 1953

For sale by the Superintendent of Documents, U. S. Government Printing Office
Washington 25, D. C. - Price 65 cents

CONTENTS

Page

Scope of the study 1

General survey 1

Principal cordage fibers 3

Definition of terms 3

Confusion in use of fiber terms 4

Fibers used in the cordage world 5

Distribution of abaca 9

Eastern Hemisphere 9

Western Hemisphere 10

History 12

The plant 16

Technical description 20

Climatic requirements 21

Soil requirements 23

Philippine Islands 23

Central America 25

Propagation and culture 25

Propagating material 25

Planting 26

Cultural operations 28

Producing period 28

Fertilization . 29

Diseases and insect pests 33

Philippine Islands 33

Bunchy top 34

The vascular wilt disease 35

Mosaic 36

Dry sheath rot of abaca " 39

Stem rot of abaca 39

Heart rot 39

Insect pests of abaca 40

Central America 41

"Tip over" 41

Leaf spot 45

Panama disease 46

Bud and heart rot 46

Sheath and stalk rot 46

Taltusa 47

Varieties 47

Page

Plant improvement 52

Harvesting and cleaning 54

Philippine Islands 54

Central America 59

The fiber 63

Description 63

Microscopic characters 64

Chemical composition 72

Agencies causing degenerative changes 73

Biological action , 73

Improper drying 74

Inadequate circulation of air 74

Acid content 74

Action of heat 74

Imperfect cleaning 75

Storage 76

Tests for detecting different types of degradation 77

Miscellaneous tendering 77

Fiber adulterants 77

Physical characteristics 78

Purity 79

Color 79

Uniformity 80

Strength 80

Factors causing variations in tensile strength 82

Fiber from different leaf sheaths of one stalk 82

Fiber from different heights in the stalk 82

Fiber from different varieties 82

Fiber of different grades 84

Fiber from plants of different ages 85

Tensile strength of hand-cleaned fiber versus machine-
cleaned 85

Tensile strength of abaca from different regions of

production 86

Knot strength 86

Abrasion and flex 89

Rigidity 90

Breaking length or stretch 90

Fineness 90

Page

Swelling 91

Buoyancy 92

Strength loss due to immersion in water 93

Resistance to immersion if tarred 94

Relative strength of ropes of different fibers 96

Rope strength as influenced by weathering and

preservative treatments 98

Deterioration due to hot stack gases 100

Cordage standards 101

Abaca, Canton, Amokid, and Pacol 101

Philippines 101

Central America 105

Indonesia 105

Sisal 105

Kenya, Tanganyika, and Uganda 105

Mozambique 106

Indonesia 107

Philippines 108

Comore Islands 108

Haiti . '. . 108

Brazil 109

Henequen 109

Mexico 109

Cuba 110

Maguey 110

Philippines 110

Phormium 110

New Zealand 110

St. Helena, Azores, Argentina Ill

Chile Ill

Mauritius (Furcraea eigantea) 112

Island of Mauritius 112

Brazil 112

Caroa 112

Brazil 112

Pa^e

Production of cordage fibers by grades 112

Abaca 112

Sisal 114

Henequen 115

Mauritius 116

Bale weights, sizes, and stowage factors of cordage fibers 116

Transportation of cordage fibers 116

The broker 118

Ocean freight rates on fiber 118

Marine and War Risk insurance 119

Weighing and tare allowances 1 20

Port or terminal charges on fiber in United States ports ... 121

Literature cited... .„ 122

ABACA - A CORDAGE FIBER

By Brittain B. Robinson and Falba L. Johnson,
Bureau of Plant Industry, Soils, and Agricultural Engineering.

SCOPE OF THE STUDY

In the history of fibers war has brought sudden and lasting changes. By shutting off the
supplies of Russian hemp, the Napoleonic wars (1796-1815) brought sunn fiber into prominence.
Soon after the close of that conflict an officer of the American Navy, Lieutenant John White, re-
turning from the Philippines, demonstrated the superiority of a "new" fiber, abaca, for marine
use. Nevertheless, it was not until the Crimean war (1854-56) again deprived this country of
Russian hemp,1 that abaca finally displaced hemp as the premier cordage fiber.

In the years immediately following the Spanish-American War (1898) Americans entered
the Philippine abaca industry.2 While the Filipino planters continued to grow the fiber as their
ancestors had grown it and to clean it in the same primitive way that Magellan's companions
might have observed when they visited the Islands four centuries ago, the Americans introduced
modern methods of culture and invented a machine for stripping the fiber that took some of the
burden of the work from the man. In the early part of this century Japanese brought in to do the
work on the plantations became more numerous, and at the close of World War I, having the
"know-how" of the Americans and with plenty of capital, they were able to take over and develop
the most progressive and most profitable part of the abaca industry, that in Davao in the south-
ern part of the island of Mindanao. Now after World War II the Japanese are gone, and the
Philippine Government is endeavoring to rehabilitate the industry. A new abaca industry, how-
ever, has arisen in the Western Hemisphere. What the future of this industry will be it is still
too early to say. Meantime there are many fibers growing in the Western Hemisphere that are
potential substitutes for other fibers that might not be available to the United States should im-
ports from the Far East again be cut off.

This monograph discusses the physical and chemical characteristics of abaca as compared
with other cordage fibers or their products, as well as the economic and agricultural problems
connected with abaca production. Some of these "alternate" cordage fibers that are named are
practically unknown in international trade, but potentially a few have great value, and their
presence in the Western Hemisphere is of strategic interest to the United States.

In addition to published technical information on the subject of cordage fibers, records of
various organizations have been made available to the writers for inclusion in this monograph.
These include principally the records of the Division of Cotton and Other Fiber Crops and Dis-
eases of the Bureau of Plant Industry, Soils, and Agricultural Engineering, United States Depart-
ment of Agriculture; manufactured rope tests performed at the Boston Navy Yard and reported
to the Bureau of Ships, Navy Department; and certain records of the Office of Technical Serv-
ices, which have been declassified. Various individuals and organizations have contributed also,
as will be indicated in the text. Special mention should be made, however, of the cooperation
accorded the writers by the Cordage Institute, which represents the primary cordage manufac-
turers of the United States.

GENERAL SURVEY

During the period between the two world wars production of the major hard fibers- -abaca,
sisal, and henequen- -bordered upon chronic surplus, and at one time or another in almost every
producing country measures were taken to control their production.

With the fall of the Netherlands East Indies and the Philippine Islands to the Japanese
forces in 1942 the picture changed radically. All the world's commercial abaca-producing
areas were in Japanese hands, and the Western Allies found themselves cut off from the
sources of half the total world supply of hard fibers. At the same time the war increased the
demand for fibers for marine cordage and for military, industrial, and agricultural uses. An
urgent and far-reaching program was instituted by the United States Government to overcome
these shortages. From experimental plantings of abaca begun by the United States Department
of Agriculture in Panama in 1925 in anticipation of interference with importations in case of
war, propagating stocks were available for increasing production in the Western Hemisphere.
Plantings in Central America were rapidly expanded, and by 1945, when accumulated stocks of

1 BALMACEDA, C, and BART0L0ME, V. C. A STUDY OF THE PHILIPPINE ABACA INDUSTRY. 27 pp. Sept. 3, 1935. [Un-
published report submitted to the Technical Trade Committee.]

2 PHILIPPINES: MARCH 1950 ABACA AND OTHER FIBERS SITUATION. 12 pp. Report 238 of Mar. 1, 1950, from American
Embassy, Manila, P. I. [Unpublished.]

2 U. S. DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE

abaca from the Pacific Islands were exhausted, the rate of Central American production had in-
creased to approximately 20, 000 tons per year, or nearly half the pre-war importation of about
43, 000 tons a year from the Western Pacific (195). *

With sisal, the next most important of the three major hard fibers, the story of expanded
production was the same. Haiti in 1926 had begun the planting of sisal; in 1932, 12, 500 acres
were under cultivation and by the end of 1945 the acreage planted to sisal had increased to al-
most 50,000 (18). Exports increased from 350 long tons in the fiscal year 1929-30 to 16,521
long tons in 1945-46 (18). The growing of sisal had likewise expanded in Brazil and Venezuela.

Cuban henequen beginning about 1885 totaled 29, 100,000 pounds in 1945, 3 an increase of
8, 100, 000 pounds above the 1930-35 average figure.

Stimulated by the war demand, other hard fiber plants were grown more extensively in
Latin America. Phormium production was increased in Brazil, Chile, and Argentina and
greater facilities were made available for collecting and cleaning caroa'in Brazil.

Such was the picture in September 1945 when the war came to a close. Yet so acute was
the need for fibers during the war and so great the dislocations following it, that after five
years of peace the world need for fibers was far from satisfied.

The decline in abaca production in the Philippine Republic after the war and its failure to
recover have far exceeded expectations. For 1949 production was estimated at 176 million
pounds as compared with 181 million pounds in 1948, 241 million pounds in 1947, and 400 mil-
lion pounds before the outbreak of the war (1935-38 average) (103). Production in Central
America on the whole increased steadily until 1948, but the production of fiber for 1948 was
only 146,477 bales (300-lb. bale), and, for 1949, less than 100, 000. 4

In the United States true hemp (Cannabis sativa), which more than a century ago was the
chief fiber used in the manufacture of rope, regained some of its former importance during the
war, when it became a valuable extender of sisal in the making of rope. Under Government
sponsorship the supply produced in the United States rose from less than 600 long tons in 1937-
39 to almost 60, 000 long tons in 1943, the year of peak production (185). At the close of 1944
the need for a Government hemp program was less, and the 1945 production dropped to an esti-
mated 3,420 long tons (185). Of the 42 Government-constructed hemp-scutching mills in opera-
tion during the war most were disposed of and none was used by 1949 for processing hemp.
Three privately owned mills were still operating in 1952.

The shortage of jute and hard fibers has forced the hemp-producing countries to use more
of this fiber for domestic needs and so has restricted the quantity available for export.

The production of flax in the United States, which averaged less than 400 long tons in the
thirties, rose to about 3,000 long tons (185) during World War II, but in this product, too, there
has been a substantial reduction since the Government price-support program was discontinued.
Flax, like hemp, is now produced chiefly in the Soviet Union and countries associated with her.

The world looks to India and Pakistan for its requirements of jute. Before partition most
of the jute was grown in what is now Pakistan. From there it was shipped to Calcutta, where
part of it was processed and the rest, together with the manufactured goods, was exported.
Partition left India with most of the mills and Pakistan with most of the raw jute. India is trying
to grow sufficient jute to feed her mills, and Pakistan is attempting to build mills to meet her
own requirements for manufactured products.

Prices of abaca, sisal, and henequen while fluctuating, have been very much higher than
before the war. In July 1948 representative grades were selling at over three times the 1934-
38 averages (71). The rise in the price of jute has been even greater; in February 1950 the
price of raw jute was 383 percent higher than in 1940 (158). The countries that can pay in hard
currency get the bulk of the fiber offerings when supplies were scarce though the trade press
in the United States in the late forties reported considerable resistance to the high prices of
abaca and sisal on the part of the cordage industry, whose sales a're said to have declined.

In quantity of plant fiber consumed in commercial use, jute has been second only to cot-
ton. This position of eminence is not due to its strength, however, but to its cheapness. What
effect the rapidly disappearing price differential in favor of jute will have on the jute economy
of India and Pakistan cannot as yet be gaged, but attention will undoubtedly be focused on less-
er known fibers that may serve as substitutes.

New purchasers have been competing for the fibers in short supply. In the latter part of
1948 Japan, traditionally one of the heaviest buyers of low grades of Philippine abaca, entered
the market through SCAP (Supreme Council of Allied Powers). These purchases by SCAP were

3 CUBAN FIBER INDUSTRY IN 1945. 16 pp. Report 88 of Mar. 5, 1946 from American Embassy, Habana, Cuba. [Unpublished.]

4 UNITED FRUIT COMPANY, and U. S. RECONSTRUCTION FINANCE CORPORATION, GOOD HOPE, MONTE VERDE, COSTA
RICA, GUATEMALA, HONDURAS, AND PANAMA DEVELOPMENT PROGRAM. STATEMENT OF PRODUCTION, SHIPMENTS, AND
QUANTITY ON HAND JANUARY 29, 1949. 5 pp. 1949. [Processed.]

♦Italic figures in parentheses refer to Literature cited, p. 422.

ABACA--A CORDAGE FIBER 3

made primarily to help rehabilitate the fishing industry of Japan on which she depended so heav-
ily for food in the pre-war years. In 1949 Japan also bought 25, 000 tons of East African sisal, 5
and according to a statement made by the chairman of the Tanganyika Sisal Marketing Associa-
tion, Japan represents "an entirely new and secure future market for East African sisal"6 In
1949 Germany also reentered the hard fibers market by placing orders in Indonesia,7 Dollars
released through the European Recovery Plan have made it possible for still other countries to
purchase fibers which previously were unable to satisfy their needs because of dollar shortage.
All in all, it may be said that in a world short of industrial fibers the United States has
been able to meet her normal needs, but for building against future needs the supply is still in-
adequate.

PRINCIPAL CORDAGE FIBERS

DEFINITION OF TERMS

History and sentiment play a large part in an understanding of the term "cordage. " The
word cordage is used loosely by many people and even by many specialists in the field. Frequent-
ly this has led to confusion and it would be well if the term could be specifically defined.

The American Society of Testing Materials, Textile Committee D-13, in an article en-
titled "Definition of Terms, Designation D 123-48" does not define cordage although it does de-
fine cord, twine, thread, and yarn, as are cited later. As generally understood, the term
"cordage" includes all threads, yarns, twines, cords, ropes, and cables; "textiles" includes all
fabrics. If a manufacturing firm was producing jute yarns for the carpet trade where the yarns
would be used on a loom, the production of such yarns would be a textile business, whereas if
the yarns were to be twisted into twines or cords and used as such, the designation would be a
cordage business. While manufacturers use cordage in a comprehensive sense to include all
sizes and varieties of the article from a harvester twine to the largest cable, the term is gen-
erally considered more applicable to a rope that is greater than one-half inch in diameter.8

Some authors have attempted to separate threads and twines from the heavier type cord-
age such as ropes and cables by selecting an arbitrary figure and classifying all products having
a diameter smaller than the chosen figure as thread or twine and all having a larger diameter as
rope.

An extensive search of the literature has not been made to obtain the history of the arbi-
trary selection of a measurement of bulk to separate ropes from small twines and threads. The
United States Tariff Act of 1930, U. S. Public Law 361, Washington 1930, paragraph 1004 (c)
defines material that shall not be included in that paragraph but shall be listed as cordage under
paragraph 1005 (a) as "twines or cords composed of three or more strands, each strand com-
posed of two or more yarns, if such twines or cords are 3/l6 of an inch or more in diameter. "
This figure, 3/l6 of an inch or more in diameter, apparently has some precedence through us-
age, for in 1940 Evans and Cheatham (69) stated that "cordage is defined as 'ropes and cords in
general' and is distinguished from twine, according to the usual acceptance, in that it is three-
sixteenths of an inch in diameter or greater. " Three years later the United States War Produc-
tion Board in Conservation Order M-84, February 2, 1943, defined agave cordage as "cables
and ropes 3/16 inch in diameter and larger. " However, the terms used in fiber nomenclature
must not be construed too narrowly. For example, if a product is of rope construction but is
only 5/32 of an inch in diameter, there will be particular instances when it cannot be said that
it is not a rope. The precedent which has been established, however, of using the diameter
3/16 might well be continued to separate general statistics in reference to the production of
twines and ropes. Possibly some similar figure of lower denomination might be arrived at for
distinguishing threads in a broad sense from twines.

In order to clarify the usage of a number of cordage terms that will be employed through-
out the discussion, the following definitions are given. These definitions are taken from the
American Society of Testing Materials, Committee D-13, Definition of Terms (D123-48), Octo-
ber 1948.

5 RECENT DEVELOPMENTS IN THE TANGANYIKA SISAL EXPORT MARKET. 8 pp. Report 84 of Nov. 23, 1949 from
American Consulate] Dar-es-Salaam, Tanganyika. [Unpublished. J

6 See Footnote No. 5.

7 HARD FIBER PRODUCTION AND EXPORTS, CALENDAR YEAR 1949. 5 pp. Report 190 of March 15, 1950 from American
Embassy, Djakarta, Indonesia. [Unpublished.]

8 WATERBURY ROPE COMPANY, NEW YORK. Catalog. 1901.

4 U. S. DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE

Yarn. --A generic term for an assemblage of fibers or filaments, either natural or

manufactured, twisted or laid together to form a continuous strand suitable for
use in weaving, knitting, or otherwise intertwining to form textile fabrics.
Note. --Varieties include single yarn, ply yarn, cord, twine, sewing thread, etc.
Thread, Sewing. --A variety of yarn, normally plied, characterized by a combination of
twisting and finishing with solid or semi-solid, waxlike materials to secure a
smooth, compact strand which is quite flexible but presents no loose fibers.
Twine, 1. General. --A ply yarn made from medium twist single yarn with ply twist in
the opposite direction.

2. Binder. --A single strand yarn usually 3 or 4 mm. in diameter made of hard
fibers, such as henequen, sisal, abaca, or phormium, and sufficiently stiff to per-
form satisfactorily on a mechanical grain binder.
Cord. --The product formed by twisting together two or more ply yarns.

Braid. --A narrow tubular or flat fabric produced by intertwining a single set of yarns, ac-
cording to a definite pattern (Maypole process).
Twist, Cable. --A twine, cord or rope construction in which each successive twist is in the

opposite direction to the preceding twist, an S/z/S or Z/S/Z construction.
Twist, Hawser. --A twine, cord, or rope construction in which the single and first ply

twist are in the same direction, and the second ply twist is in the opposite direction,
an S/S/Z or Z/Z/S construction.
To the above terms two additional ones not defined by the American Society of Testing
Materials should be added:

Strand. --A term employed to describe a number of yarns twisted together to form one of
the component parts of the finished rope. In reality, strand is synonymous with
twine in respect to mechanical construction, but strand is an intermediate, not a
final product.
Laid (or Lay). --This term is synonymous with twist and applies to the method of laying

together strands to form the rope. Rope can be supplied in either right or left lay.
The construction of yarns, twines, cords, and ropes is illustrated in figure 1, which
shows in surface view different types of twist construction. The twists as viewed in vertical
position are designated by the letter "Z" for a right twist and "S" for a left twist. These letters
are more commonly used by the trade and in published articles than the letters "R" and "L".
The question might be asked how the twist can be reversed in assembling yarns into twines, or
cords or twines into cables or hawsers. The explanation is that in general the reverse twist is
not as great as the original twist, hence the article is not completely unwound.

CONFUSION IN USE OF FIBER TERMS

Unfortunately there exists a great deal of confusion in the use of various fiber terms. This
is particularly true of the term "hemp. " To many people hemp applies to any ropelike fiber, but
to the botanist the true hemp plant is Cannabis sativa. Even in a large manufacturing plant the
term "hemp" may be used differently in different departments. Thus in a department employing
soft fiber machinery the term "hemp" is understood as the true hemp Cannabis sativa, while iri
the hard fiber department of the same concern the term "hemp" might apply to abaca, Musa
textilis. The term "hemp" is so loosely used that even the trained fiber specialist sometimes
has- difficulty in interpreting it. To many this might seem of minor consequence, but when it
involves trade statistics and customs duties, it is an item of considerable importance. Many
trade journals have not followed a nomenclature that would clarify this confusion. The Linen
Trade Circular, February 5, 1949, in an article on the raw materials imported into the British
Isles, is quoted as follows: "Total imports of hemp during the year 1948 amounted to 92,848
tons, valued at £ 8,488, 630. Soft hemps included 7, 319 tons from India and Pakistan, etc. ,
1, 866 tons from Italy and 763 tons from Chile. Hard hemps imported included 71, 822 tons from
British East Africa, and 9, 268 tons from the Philippine Islands. " A well-informed fiber spe-
cialist reading this article will readily understand that the "hemp" from the Philippine Islands
is likely to be abaca, though some cantala might be included. The "hemp" from British East
Africa is probably sisal, that from Italy and Chile is true hemp, while that from India and Pak-
istan is likely to be all jute, though it might include some sunn (Crotalaria juncea) or mesta
(Hibiscus cannabinus), or even other fibers.

The trade statistics of China are frequently very confusing because of the use of the gen-
eral Chinese word Ma, which apparently is the root of numerous fiber terms and may account
for the lack of clarity in statistics relating to the production of the different Chinese fibers.

ABACA--A CORDAGE FIBER

■ Strand i r )>torn

Axis of strand

■^-

One complete twist >■

Figure 1.— Different types of twist construction illustrating the position in a rope of the fiber
in the yarn and the yarn in the strand (A), the strands in a rope (B), and the plain-laid
ropes in a cable (C).

FIBERS USED IN THE CORDAGE WORLD

The cordage fibers are (1) soft, bast or stem fibers, such as flax, hemp, ramie, etc. ;
(2) hard or leaf fibers, such as abaca, sisal, henequen, etc. ; (3) seed hairs, such as cotton;
and (4) other fibers of special structural origin, such as coir. Thus cordage fibers may include
almost any known plant fiber that can be spun or twisted into yarns.

Because of the structural characteristics of some fibers their value for textiles is low.
Hence such coarse fibers as abaca, sisal, and henequen are normally used in cordage products.
This does not necessarily mean that they cannot be used in textiles, for abaca fabrics in the
Philippine Islands have been tourist articles in recent years and earlier formed household fab-
rics. In Latin America large tonnages of henequen and closely related sisal-like agave fibers
such as Agave letonae in El Salvador and Furcraea cabuya in Ecuador are used in the manufac-
ture of sacks for packaging native products. Hence these so-called hard fibers normally asso-
ciated with cordage can be classed as textile fibers even though their use in that field is
relatively minor from the standpoint of world utilization.

Evolution in fiber utilization is constantly taking place. While many people are familiar
with the rec«nt introduction of artificial fibers, i. e. , rayons and nylon, and many may remember

6 U. S. DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE

from their early history studies the rise in importance of cotton in textiles and twines after the
invention of the cotton gin in 1793, few realize how relatively new in international trade are
abaca, sisal, henequen, and jute. These four fibers have taken the place of true hemp in many
products.

Abaca is native to the Philippine Islands. The exports from these islands in 1818 were only
41 tons, and in 1850, 8, 561 tons (60). Compared with the exports in 1935 of over 180 , 000 tons the
rise in importance of this fiber is evident. Sisal and henequen, two closely related agave fibers,
are both indigenous to the American Tropics. The earliest effort to introduce these fibers into
commerce was made in Mexico in 1839 (99)» but it was not until the invention of a machine called
the "raspador" reduced the labor required to prepare them and aided in the production and mill
consumption of these fibers. The 1934-38 annual world production of sisal and henequen fibers
amounted to 351,000 metric tons. Experimental shipments of jute fiber were made to Europe
from India as early as 1791. 9 The first commercial shipments to Dundee, Scotland, are usually
stated to have been made in 1828, but there was no great progress in the manufacture of jute un-
til 1838 and thereafter. Thus it may be seen that the use of abaca, sisal, henequen, and jute,
which make up a large percentage of the tonnage annually prepared into cordage, is of relatively
recent origin. In fact, these four fibers, together with cotton, play such an important part in our
domestic utilization that we are inclined to overlook the importance of hemp and flax as cordage
fibers. This results partly from the fact that these fibers are not used to any great extent for
cordage in the United States. In Europe, the U.S.S.R. , and China, however, they are important
cordage fibers as well as textile fibers.

Ernst Schilling, in his monograph "Die Faserstoffe der Pflanzenreiches, " published in
1924, listed 1,926 different plant species utilized for fiber. However, the number of fibers that
enter international trade and are of importance in the principal industrial countries of the world
are: Cotton, hemp, sisal, henequen, abaca, jute, and flax. To these might be added possibly 10
more that play a minor role in international trade, namely: Urena lobata, coir, Mauritius,
cantala, ramie, phormium, caroa, sunn, kenaf, and palma istle. These 17 fibers are for most
practical purposes the only ones used in cordage at present that enter international trade. There
are, however, many other fibers used in native industries in countries where industrial develop-
ment has not progressed far that offer possibilities of an increase in production. Among these
are many which from time to time have been produced in limited quantities experimentally and
samples have been shipped to cordage manufacturers for tests. Due to many factors such fibers
have not so far been used to any great extent. However, there are many which might assume an
important role if their physical and chemical properties were better understood or if some
change occurred in the standards of living and economics of production in the countries where
they are produced.

Table 1 lists the more important cordage fibers utilized five years after World War II, to-
gether with some of the principal plant fibers that will be discussed because of their potential
value as cordage fibers. In addition, table 1 gives the principal countries of production or the
native habitat of the plant, together with the reported or estimated amount of the fiber that en-
ters international trade.

Although this text does not plan to discuss fibers other than those. of vegetable origin and in
their natural condition, the extent to which nylon, paper, and metallic wires are used to substi-
tute for plant cordage fibers should not be overlooked in visualizing the future of this industry.

The potential cordage fibers listed in the third section of table 1 are primarily ones select-
ed b.y the authors. The more common fibers utilized in primitive industries for fabrics and cord-
age are included. Most of these fibers are so-called jute substitutes and only a few, such as
sansevieria and pita floja, are suitable for utilization in large size cordage.

Small quantities of cordage of a fourth group of fibers, in most cases amounting to no more
than a few hundred tons, are prepared under various conditions for local use. Some of the fibers
so employed are fique (Furcraea macrophylla) and cabuya (F. cabuya) in South America; bamboo
in the Canton delta region of China; esparto (Stipa tenacissima) in southern Spain; Agave leche-
guilla, A. tequilana, and A. zapupe in Mexico; and even palms, as Bactris spp. in Brazil, Acro-
comia spp. in Latin America, and Chamaerops spp. in the Mediterranean area. To this list
might be added many additional fiber plants. These have been omitted because in the authors'
opinion it is extremely doubtful if they would be cultivated and prepared on such a scale that the
fibers could compete in international trade with the more common ones.

In some cases only the commonest or type species of a genus is given in the third section
of table 1. Frequently there are many other closely related species of the same genus wliich are
potentially valuable fiber plants. This is particularly true of the wild species of many genera of
the Malvaceae.

9 SURVEY OF THE INDIAN "JUTE INDUSTRY. Report of Aug. 24, 1937 from American Consulate General, Calcutta, India. [Un-
published.]

ABACA- -A CORDAGE FIBER

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ABACA--A CORDAGE FIBER 9

As mentioned earlier, the first section of table 1 lists the seven common fibers that enter
international trade. Actually, the list would be increased if the two species of jute and two or
more of cotton were counted separately. This fact is mentioned because the production of the
several different agave species--sisal, henequen, and cantala- -have been recorded separately.

DISTRIBUTION OF ABACA

EASTERN HEMISPHERE

The recorded history of abaca goes back to the days of the early Spanish and Portuguese
explorers. On the first circumnavigation, 1519-22, of the globe, Pigafetta, a companion of
Magellan, noted that the natives of the island of Cebu in the Philippines wore clothing made
from the fiber of the abaca plant (59). In 1697 another navigator, Dampier, an Englishman,
reported that a "plantain, " apparently abaca, was cultivated on the island of Mindanao, and
from it fiber was obtained.

Though abaca is indigenous to the Philippine Islands, it is not cultivated throughout the
archipelago. Its northern limit of cultivation is central southern Luzon, comprising the Prov-
inces of Cavite, Laguna, and Batangas (156). The three areas in which most of the commercial
fiber is produced are (1) the Bicol Peninsula of southern Luzon, comprising the provinces of
Albay, Camarines Sur, Camarines Norte, and Sorsogon (fig. 2) (127); (2) Leyte and Samar in
the Visayan Islands; and (3) the province of Davao on the island of Mindanao. Attempts to intro-
duce the plant into other countries have been made, but with so little success that until recent
years the belief was generally held that the plant could not be grown commercially outside of
the Philippine Islands.

Abaca was introduced into Guam in the early 1880's. The plant grew well, but skilled
labor for working the fiber was not available and the planting was discontinued. In 1903 the
natives of Botel Tobago Island, off the coast of Formosa, were said to grow abaca for the
manufacture of cord and cloth. Attempts have been made to introduce abaca into India (as
early as 1822), the Solomon and Andaman Islands, Formosa, Ceylon, Burma, Indo-China,
Celebes, Java, Sumatra, Borneo, Fiji, the Federated Malay States, New Caledonia, Queens-
land, New Guinea, Hawaii, German East Africa, Madagascar, and Reunion (47, 59, 73, 105,
106, 171, 183).

For various reasons the production of abaca in most of these countries was unsuccessful.
In some instances the fiber obtained was of inferior quality, in others the cost of production
exceeded the value of the product, and in still others there was no demand for the fiber after
it was produced. In the Netherlands East Indies, however, the industry was successfully es-
tablished. About 1925 abaca began to be produced in Sumatra from suckers obtained from the
Philippines. The Dutch, who had great financial resources, highly skilled technicians, and
long experience in tropical agriculture, as well as an abundance of land with favorable soil
and climate, lacked only the skilled labor for stripping and cleaning the fiber to develop an
important abaca industry. A satisfactory machine was eventually developed and the Dutch,
though they never became a leading producer of abaca, were able to sell their product at
lower prices than the Filipinos could sell fiber of comparable grades. In 1931 the Philippine
Secretary of Agriculture, comparing the selling price of the Philippine fiber with that of
Sumatra, stated, "It is plain that Sumatra abaca would eliminate the Manila abaca in the world's
market if she could fully supply the demand" (140). The war put an end to this promising indus-
try. Production in 1949 was from old plantings which were nearing exhaustion. In 1950, how-
ever, some postwar plantings reached maturity, and if economic and political conditions
stabilize, Indonesia might again recover its prewar production of high-grade abaca fiber.

The output of abaca from British North Borneo was reported to be 2, 100 tons in 1939, an
insignificant output when compared with that of the Philippines, but interesting because the
production was almost wholly a Japanese enterprise. A postwar development in North Borneo
included the formation of a company, called Borneo Abaca Limited, which bought 16, 000 acres
of Japanese estates for replanting to abaca.20 The company in 1949 was clearing 4, 000 acres
and had 3, 500 acres under cultivation. The plan was to have the entire acreage planted by 1952.

The British are also stepping up plantings in Malaya. These plantings, however, are
hardly beyond the experimental stage, though the fiber produced is said to be comparable in
color, texture," and strength to good quality abaca from the Philippines.

The failures that have attended the numerous attempts to introduce abaca into various
countries are not to be regarded as proof that it cannot be successfully grown in these countries.

20 PROSPECTS FOR THE DEVELOPMENT OF HARD FIBERS IN NORTH BORNEO, SARAWAK, and BRUNEI. 2 pp. Report
34 of Apr. 11, 1949 from American Consulate General, Singapore. [Unpublished.]

U. S. DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE

500

IDS OF

1,000

1,500

1 1

934 ja im

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m - i

25 126 . 127

J S DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE

NEG 1210 OFFICE OF FOREIGN AGRlCULT

Figure 2. -The three principal abaca-producing areas in the Philippine Islands: the
Bicol Peninsula of southern Luzon, Leyte-Samar, and Mindanao. (Courtesy of
Foreign Agriculture.)

It is entirely possible that with present facilities for rapid transportation of planting stock and
with a better knowledge of the cultural requirements of the plant and the economics of its pro-
duction, it may be grown in many places where it has been tried unsuccessfully.

WESTERN HEMISPHERE

In 1922, the Philippine Islands constituted the sole source of the world's supply of abaca.
To a nation such as the United States recently emerged from war, the disadvantage inherent in
the concentration of this vitally important product in a limited area thousands of miles from the
continental United States was obvious, and plans were drawn to study the possibility of introduc-
ing abaca into the Western Hemisphere. In February of that year, the United States Department
of Agriculture made a survey of areas in the Canal Zone to determine whether conditions there
would be suitable for growing abaca (58). The result of the survey showed neither sufficient
available land nor soil or climatic conditions favorable for its growth. The survey was then ex-
tended to the Almirante region in northwestern Panama, near the Caribbean seacoast and the
Costa Rican border.

ABACA--A CORDAGE FIBER 11

In the first third of the present century, Almirante, in the valley of the Changuinola River,
was one of the richest banana plantations of the United Fruit Company, but the "Panama" and
Sigatoka diseases destroyed the bananas and the plantation was practically abandoned. Here the
soil and climatic conditions seemed ideal for the growth of abaca. In 1923 abaca rhizomes were
shipped from the Philippines, but these failed to survive the long voyage. When the plants were
examined at the Plant Introduction Gardens in the Canal Zone, they were found to contain large
numbers of active nematodes and possibly borers as well. The United Fruit Company then re-
fused to receive any more abaca plant material from the Philippines and stated that they would
conduct no further experiments with abaca.

In 1924 some abaca plants were shipped to Washington D. C. , but these soon died. Unde-
terred by these setbacks, Edwards and Dewey, of the United States Department of Agriculture,
whose project this was, made still another attempt to introduce abaca into Panama. In 1925 the
United Fruit Company, which was sending a plant pathologist to the Philippines to collect ba-
nana plants for shipment to Panama, agreed to permit him to supervise the collection and prep-
aration of abaca material also for shipment to Panama. The plants were obtained in Davao,
which grew the best varieties and at that time was relatively free of abaca diseases. Meantime
strong opposition developed in Manila to the shipment of material which might eventually build
an industry in the Western Hemisphere that would challenge the monopolistic position of the
Philippines. So strong was the pressure on the Government that the Philippine Legislature
passed in 1925 a law prohibiting the export to foreign countries of abaca seeds or plant mate-
rial. But the law came three months too late to stop the first successful shipment of abaca to
the western world. The collections by Edwards were not made without difficulty, however, and
it was only because of the cooperation of the two leading American producers that the collec-
tions were possible. Twenty years later, as Edwards (59) recounts, these men died in Japanese
prison camps "at a time when millions of pounds of marine rope, made possible because of
their patriotism, were being used in the war with Japan. "

The last shipment (1925) consisted of more than 1,400 items of plant material, represent-
ing 6 .different varieties of abaca. On arrival at the plant quarantine station, Panama Canal Zone,
after 42 days at sea, less than three-fourths of the plants were alive, but within 3 months after
the first planting about 500 strong plants were growing in a nursery near Almirante, Panama.

In 1928 the nurseries were expanded to 50 acres of experimental field plantings. The
plants flourished in the rich soil, and in 1929 a hagotan fiber cleaning machine brought from
the Philippines was used to strip the fiber. Manufacturing tests in the United States showed the
tensile strength of the rope made from this fiber to compare favorably with that manufactured
from Philippine abaca. Consideration was then given to enlarging the plantings, but the low
price of abaca and the uncertainties that accompanied the industrial depression of the early
thirties caused the project to become dormant. In 1936, however, the improvement in econom-
ic- conditions in the United States and the increasing control of the abaca industry by the Japa-
nese in the Philippines again stimulated interest in the expansion of plantings in Central America.
In 1937 about 1,000 acres of abaca were planted at Almirante, Panama, and in 1939 a second
planting of 1, 000 acres was made. With the coming of war no time was lost in expanding the
plantings, .and by the autumn of 1943, 1 1, 472 acres had been planted in Costa Rica, 5, 716 in
Guatemala, 5,012 in Honduras, and 4,415 in Panama, a total of 26,615 acres (58). By April
1945 five large semiautomatic fiber-cleaning mills were in operation on the Central American
acreage and more than 20, 000, 000 pounds of fiber had been produced. All of the Central Amer-
ican plantations -have been operated by the United Fruit Company under contract with the United
States Government.

Another development in the abaca industry in the Western Hemisphere is the apparently
successful introduction of abaca into Ecuador. There exists in Ecuador what is known as the
"Garua" belt--"garua" meaning drizzle --where the air is always moist. Three of the four plan-
tations are situated In this belt on land reclaimed from the jungle. The original planting stock
consisted of six rhizomes obtained from the early introductions int.o the Canal Zone. From
these six, planted in 1929, has come the seed stock for approximately five hundred acres. (See
fig- 3.)

Hand stripping in Ecuador was first attempted but with little success, partly due to the
low production of the unskilled help. Later a few hagotan machines were introduced, and there
were various ups and downs with these before they were successfully utilized. The work in 1950
was still in the experimental stage with only sample trial runs of fiber being attempted. In 1949
these sample tests resulted in 29, 773 pounds of fiber valued at less than $3, 000. ai Production
could be increased materially, however, if the owner believed that his methods were advanced

21 FIBERS, ECUADOR, 1949. 3 pp. Report 37 of Feb. 24, 1950 from American Consulate General, Guayaquil, Ecuador.
[Unpublished. ]

261543 O - 54 - 2

U. S. DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE

Figure 3.--A flourishing 20-month-oid abaca plantation in Ecuador.

enough to be economically feasible. The fiber prepared has been considered of high quality. While
only one grower is engaged in producing abaca in Ecuador, it would appear that, in view of the
relatively large area of high quality soils that exist between Quevedo, where the present produc-
tion is located, and Santo Domingo de los Colorados, an opportunity for large-scale operations in
abaca exists.

Abaca was introduced into the Dominican Republic (47) about 1908 and the Department of
Agriculture has conducted trial plots in six different areas of the island from the original stock
and from plant material more recently introduced from Trinidad. Samples of fiber prepared in
19471 were analyzed and evaluated at the Imperial Institute in London, where the report showed
a slight inferiority to commercial grades but on the whole the fiber was found to be of good
marketable quality.

Experimental introductions have been made into Brazil, British and French Guiana, Cuba,
Jamaica, Puerto Rico, Martinique, Guadeloupe, Dominica, Trinidad, Mexico, St. Vincent, and
Florida, but without any reported developments except in Martinique and Brazil, where some in-
crease has occurred. In 1949 planting material was sent by the United States Department of Agri-
culture to Bolivia, Peru, Nicaragua, and El Salvador From the foregoing review it will be seen
that abaca has now been widely distributed in the Western Hemisphere.

HISTORY

For nearly a century the production of abaca fiber has been one of the leading agricultural
industries of the Philippine Islands, and from 1901 to 1905 abaca constituted more than two-thirds
in value of the total export trade of the Islands.22

22 EDWARDS, H. T. REPORT ON FIBER INVESTIGATIONS IN THE PHILIPPINE ISLANDS FROM NOVEMBER 26, 1926 to
APRIL 2, 1927. Washington, D. C. (U. S. Bur. Plant Indus., Div. Cotton and Other Fiber Crops and Dis.) [Unpublished report.]

ABACA--A CORDAGE FIBER 13

To the Filipinos until very recent years abaca has been a noncompetitive crop, and this
very lack of competition has been responsible for many of the ills that have beset producer and
consumer alike. From 1909 to 1913 a few firms held a monopoly of the export business, each
local merchant graded his fiber to suit himself, and no premium was put on the production of a
superior product (72), Under these conditions the quality of the fiber went down. It was then
that sisal began to replace abaca in the manufacture of binder twine, and other substitutes for
abaca were sought by American manufacturers. So bad did the situation become that the Philip-
pine Government in 1915 established a fiber inspection service whose duty it was to fix official
standards and see that fibers were correctly graded according to those standards.

During and immediately following the first World War there was a strong demand for all
hard fibers, with accompanying high prices. As a result, fortunes were made in Manila and
there was more than the usual amount of speculation in the fiber market. Large loans were
made by the- different Manila banks to the fiber dealers, and there appeared to be no general
realization of the fact that these conditions could not continue indefinitely.

In the latter part of 1920 the crash came. One of the large exporters in Manila failed, with
liabilities of several million pesos, and other large commercial houses were seriously involved.
It was only by prompt and concerted action of the banking interests that a general business panic
was averted. 23

One of the direct results of these conditions was to discourage the abaca planter and to
still further lessen production, which was already on the decline. The planting of coconuts and
food crops steadily and rapidly increased in the abaca provinces and many of the fiber strippers
sought employment in other lines of work.

At that time also complaints from London concerning the quality and condition of the fiber
were numerous and bitter. In some cases it was stated that the product received was so inferior
that deductions up to 50 percent of the value of the abaca were made. This influenced the British
ropemakers to turn more to African sisal, and the cultivation of sisal was extended.

In the Philippines before World War II there were two systems of culture in the abaca in-
dustry--that of the planters in the old-producing regions, where the production of abaca was
essentially a "native" industry, and the large, modern plantations in Davao.

The story of the plow that broke the plains contains no more thrilling chapter than that of
the Americans who cleared the jungles of Davao and developed a primitive pursuit into the
leading industry of the Philippine Islands. In 1899, when the first American troops arrived in
Davao, three-fourths of the population were pagan, half-savage hill tribes (U3). Lieutenant
Bolton, the first civil governor of Davao, brought peace to the warring tribes and induced
them to settle down and grow abaca for a livelihood. Though he, like Magellan, met his death
through the treachery of a native chief, the state of peace that he had brought to Davao continued.
Another officer, Captain Burchfield, became the first American to develop an abaca plantation.
In 1904 General Leonard Wood, and later Brigadier General Pershing, both governors of the
Moro Province, of which Davao formed a part, gave their active assistance in bringing Ameri-
can settlers to Davao.

These settlers found abundant land but little available labor and practically no means of
transportation. The labor problem they surmounted by importing Filipinos from the Visayan
Islands. The native and the Spanish planters, who cultivated with hoes and bolos, warned the
Americans against trying to clear where cogon and other pernicious grasses grew, but the
Americans, relying on their machines, soon had the land plowed, fenced, and planted. By 1908
some of the plantations had been in production for four years, and the secretary of the Davao
Planters' Association (1 13) wrote enthusiastically: "Davao district offers to the newcomer a
just and stable government, conditions of peace and order, unoccupied Government land rich
with the accumulated fertility of the ages, fair transportation facilities, American neighbors
(the benefit of whose experience in plantation work may be had for the asking), a climate free
from many of the annoyances found in other parts of the Philippines, a section in which cholera,
surra, and rinderpest have never made their appearance, and a community whose intelligent
cooperation will tend to perpetuate existing favorable conditions, thus insuring a high quality of
product and a good market price. "

In spite of all these advantages, however, the arduous labor required to clear a tropical
jungle, the lonely life of the pioneer far from neighbors or friends, the difficulty of getting la-
bor to care for "the crop, and the long wait for the harvest--these things called for self-sacrifice
and self-discipline. An early observer (4), describing the hardships of these men wrote, "This
work has been no exception to the rule that great results can not be obtained without great

23 EDWARDS, H. T. Letter. Washington, D. C. January 18, 1921. (U. S. Bur. Plant Indus., Div. Cotton and Other Fiber Crops and
Dis.) [Unpublished.]

14 U. S. DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE

sacrifice. For those who have laid down their lives the most enduring monument will be the
'new Davao' which they have helped to create. "

As the plantation's expanded and more laborers were needed, Japanese workers were
brought in. These in time were followed by other Japanese with capital, who obtained leases in
Davao, and gradually the control of the industry passed out of American hands. At the beginning
of World War II the number of Japanese living in Davao numbered about 23, 000 (187). They con-
trolled from 100, 000 to 150, 000 acres of land and 65 percent of the total abaca production of the
Province (187).

The Japanese adopted the improved methods of culture introduced by the Americans and
raised the industry to a high level of efficiency. Well-equipped Philippine experiment stations
were established, a limited number of superior varieties of abaca were selected for planting,
legumes were introduced to replace the sweet potato that had formerly been used almost ex-
clusively as a cover crop, and a double-row system of planting was instituted.2^

In Davao a tenant system was followed both by the Japanese and the Americans. Under this
system the owner of the plantation leased his land in small parcels to individual tenants, usually
for a term of 15 years.25 The tenant planted the crop, cultivated it, and stripped the fiber. In the
final division about 15 to 20 percent of the crop would usually go to the landlord and 80 to 85 per-
cent to the tenant.

The Japanese also developed a marketing system that assured the producer a fair return
for his product and the buyer a product of reliable quality. Under this system there was a cen-
tral warehouse to which the growers of the surrounding districts brought their fiber, and once
a week an auction was held. Exporters and fiber merchants in Davao sent their buyers to these
auctions and the fiber was sold to the highest bidder. The local association of Japanese abaca
planters guaranteed both the weight and the quality of the fiber. Any deficiency in respect to
either was made good by these associations and the producer responsible was severely penal-
ized. Adulteration in packing the fiber was punished by a fine of 50 pesos for the first offense;
confiscation of the fiber for the second; and banishment from the island for the third (126). Thus
the Davao producers established a reputation for quality that resulted in their receiving top
prices for their product.

By 1937 Davao had become the main source of supply of the medium grades of abaca, par-
ticularly grades I, G, and Jl.26 The Bicol provinces, including Albay, South Camarines, and
Sorsogon, traditionally heavy-producing abaca areas, in 1937 still furnished the greater part of
the high-grade fiber and fairly large quantities of fiber of the medium grades. In fact, in the
years immediately preceding World War II, although abaca was produced in more than 30 prov-
inces in the Philippine Islands, Davao and the Bicol Provinces were the only abaca-producing
regions of the Philippines of particular interest to the American consumer of abaca fiber. '

Among other improvements made by the Japanese was the substitution of a small spindle
machine for the wasteful and laborious hand- stripping method of cleaning fiber that was com-
mon in the Islands. Numerous efforts to establish the use of these "hagotan" machines in the
northern provinces never met with much success. Practically all of the abaca produced in prov-
inces other than Davao continued to be cleaned by the old hand- stripping process, whereas al-
most all of the plantation abaca in Davao was cleaned with these small machines . In addition to the
spindle machines, two large semiautomatic machines were operated in Davao yielding so-called
"Deco" (decorticated) fiber.

The relative production of the different grades of fiber tended to fluctuate according to
market demand. Local conditions, and particularly typhoon damage, might have a marked effect
on the relative production of high-grade and low-grade hand-cleaned fiber. The abaca strippers
would rather clean low-grade than high-grade fiber because the work was much less difficult.
During periods of high prices the strippers could make a living producing any of the grades, and
for this reason when prices were high the production of low-grade fiber increased. In Davao,
however, these factors were not important because the greater part of the fiber was cleaned
with the spindle machines and the production was largely under the control of competent planta-
tion management.

24 EDWARDS, H. T., SALEEBY, M. M., and YOUNGBERG, S. REPORT ON SURVEY OF THE PHILIPPINE ABACA INDUSTRY.
49 pp. May 23, 1947. [Processed.]

25 EDWARDS, H. Tv FIBER INVESTIGATIONS IN THE PHILIPPINE ISLANDS, 1927 TO 1928. 57 pp. illus. [n. d.] (U. S. Bur.
Plant Indus., Div. Cotton and Other Fiber Crops and Dis.) [Unpublished report.]

26 EDWARDS, H. T. REPORT ON FIBER INVESTIGATIONS IN THE PHILIPPINE ISLANDS, THE FEDERATED MALAY
STATES AND CEYLON, FEBRUARY 15, 1937 TO JUNE 16, 1937. 55 pp. [n. d.] (U. S. Bur. Plant Indus., Div. Cotton and Other
Fiber Crops and Dis.) [unpublished report.]

27 See Footnote No. 26.

ABACA--A CORDAGE FIBER 15

The result of the improvements introduced by the Davao planters was that whereas in 1915
Davao produced only 34, 000 bales or 3. 4 percent of the total output of abaca, in 1940 it produced
693, 000 bales or 53. 3 percent of the total output (108). In the old-producing areas, on the other
hand, the yearly production from 1915 to 1929 remained almost stationary at 1,000,000 bales;
then it went down gradually until 1940, when only 606, 700 bales were produced, or 46. 7 percent
of the total output (108).

At the same time that the Davao fiber was going up in quantity it was also rising in quality,
whereas fiber from most of the old-producing regions was dropping both in quantity and quality.
The net result was a marked increase in the use of Davao fiber in the cordage mills of the United
States and a market price higher than for fiber of the same grade produced in most of the other
provinces. This was a matter of deep concern to the Filipinos, who foresaw a day rapidly ap-
proaching when the Japanese producers in Davao would displace the Filipinos in the world mar-
ket. Then came the second World War. The former Japanese plantations, or what is left of them,
still exist, but the Japanese abaca industry in that region no longer exists. Large areas once
planted to abaca are now in food crops, and until the supplies of rice and corn are again ade-
quate or the price of these foods drops to the point where it is more profitable to grow abaca,
it is hardly to be expected that the land will be used for this crop. Even before the war the
American abaca plantations had largely been replanted to coconuts, and in the northern prov-
inces a large part of the coastal areas that were formerly in abaca were covered with coconut
groves. 28

In many areas rice, coconut, and abaca compete for an inadequate labor supply, and if oc-
casion permits, the laborer will leave the arduous work of hand stripping fiber for the lighter
task of harvesting rice or preparing copra.

Just before the last war ramie captured the imagination of many abaca planters, and in
1940 and 1941 this crop became very popular with planters in Davao, and many old abaca fields
were planted with it. This, of course, had a tendency to restrict the output of abaca. After oc-
cupation, the Japanese ordered many abaca fields to be dug up and food crops planted in them
and they forbade maintenance work on others that were left. Nevertheless, at liberation about
75 percent of the Japanese plantations could have been rehabilitated without much difficulty.29
Then the inevitable happened. Squatters- -ex-guerrillas, former employees of the Japanese, and
others- -finding the former owners dispossessed and the Government not yet in control, moved
in, cut and stripped the plants mercilessly, leaving the fields to grow up in weeds and brush.

A committee of experts, -30 who made a survey of the Philippine abaca industry in 1947,
reached the conclusion that--

"The restoration of pre-war conditions in the Davao abaca industry, however desirable
this might be, is not within the range of possibility. It may be possible to build up in Davao a
new abaca industry as stable, as prosperous, and as productive as that which existed before the
war, but the conditions under which the Japanese operated no longer exist, and this new abaca
industry in Davao will be materially different from that of the period from 1920 to 1941. An in-
dustry organized and directed by the Government will have both advantages and disadvantages
that were not a factor in the business organization of the Japanese abaca* planters in Davao. With
the facilities that are furnished by the Government, it may be possible to develop in this prov-
ince a stable and prosperous abaca' industry, but this can only be accomplished with an organi-
zation and with management equal, if not superior, in efficiency to that of the former Japanese
abaca planters. "

The Philippine Government is making an effort to rehabilitate the abaca industry. To this
end in February 1947, a body known as the National Abaca and Other Fibers Corporation
(NAFCO) was placed in control of the former Japanese holdings in Davao, and later other prop-
erties were transferred to its jurisdiction. This body drew up a five-year plan which includes:
(1) development of new plantations consisting of 25, 000 acres in Davao out of the Government
reservation; (2) rehabilitation of about 50, 000 acres of former Japanese plantations in Davao;
and (3) rehabilitation of some 175, 000 acres of private plantations in the non -Davao regions (42).
This program called for a large outlay of money. Faced with many problems urgently needing
solution, the Philippine Government in early 1950 had not yet seen its way clear to provide the
funds necessary for this project. To carry to a successful conclusion so comprehensive a pro-
gram it will be necessary to secure trained personnel to replace the former Japanese manage-
ment, the ownership of land now in litigation will have to be settled, new roads will have to be
built and old ones rebuilt, machines will have to be purchased, and skilled labor will have to be
found to care for the plantations and strip the fiber.

28 See Footnote No. 24.

29 See Footnote No. 24.

30 See Footnote No. 24.

U. S. DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE

The 1950 outlook for the Philippine abaca industry was confused. Even in 1947 it was esti-
mated that at least half of the prewar plantings in the Davao area, or about 87, 500 acres were -
passing out of cultivation, and some planters believed that only about 62, 500 acres of the former
175, 000 could be returned profitably to an annual production basis (26). Three years after these
estimates were made there seemed little to justify the hope that the Davao abaca industry would
soon return to its prewar position as the largest producer of high-grade abaca. The following
figures tell the story:

Balings for:31

1946,

1947.

1948.
1949.

Davao

256,962
(6656)

352,822
(45*)

Non -Davao

134,292
(34*)

433,943
(55%)

Total

391,254
(49,000 tons)

786,765
(98,000 tons)

586,608

524,586

A new pattern of farming is developing in postwar Davao. In contrast to the great estates
of the Japanese, most of the new farms are small, each containing from 12 to 25" acres; those
allocated to settlers on the former Japanese estates contain only 12. 4 acres (144). As might be
^expected, on these small, family- size farms, the planting of food crops, especially rice and corn,
has increased.

There has been a large influx of immigrants into Davao since the war, especially from the
Visayan Islands, and many of these settlers are opening up new land for planting. Official reports
from Manila3^ in 1950 indicated that as the settlement of lands continues in Mindanao and farm-
ers obtain title to the land they work, greater progress may be expected. There is a general
belief that there will be a steady but slow increase in abaca production in the Davao area, but
there is little to base estimates as to the probable date when the prewar rate of balings will
again be achieved.

THE PLANT

Musa textilis, from which abaca fiber is derived, is a member of the banana family, and
so closely does it resemble the banana that a casual observer might easily mistake the one for
the other. However, the stalks of abaca are usually slenderer and the leaves are smaller, nar-
rower, and more pointed than those of the banana. The leaves of abaca and banana are so rolled
in the sheath than when the plants develop and the leaves unroll, a dark line is left on the right-
hand side of the undersurface of each (fig. 4). This mark is muchmore pronounced in abaca than
in banana and is an aid in distinguishing the two.33 It cannot, however, be considered an entirely
dependable diagnostic character. The abaca leaf is somewhat lighter and firmer in texture than
the banana leaf. Consequently, under similar conditions, the abaca leaf will dry and become
shredded by the wind more quickly than the banana. Because of the great difference in both abaca
and, banana arising from, differences in variety, in soil, exposure to sun, and other environmental
conditions, the foregoing distinguishing characters can only be regarded as approximate.

The genus Musa to which both abaca and banana (M. paradisiaca var. sapientum) belong is a
large -genus comprising many species of commerical value, a few of which are illustrated in figure 5.

The fruits of abaca (fig. 6), though somewhat resembling those of the banana, are much
smaller (about three inches "in length), inedible, green when ripe but later maturing yellow and
contain numerous large black seeds which are approximately 3/32 inch in diameter. The fiber
of the two are somewhat alike in appearance, but that of the banana lacks strength and is poorer
in other desirable cordage properties.

The stalk of the abaca plant rises from a fleshy, perennial rootstock. New shoots emerge in
more or less whorls or rings so that there is soon a cluster of stalks at each "hill. " When mature,
the plant consists of a group of 12 to 30 or more stalks in different stages of development.

31. Figures for 1946 and 1947 from Wigglesworth & Co., Ltd., London. Report for March 1948. Figures for 1948 and
1949 from U. S. Foreign Serv. Report-. (See Footnote No. 2.)

32 See Footnote No. 2.

33 EDWARDS, H. T. Unpublished notes. Mar. 17, 1923. (U. S. Dept. Agr.)

ABACA--A CORDAGE FIBER

Figure 4.--Abaca leaves showing characteristic black marginal line on the under surface.

This line is more pronounced in abaca than in banana. The leaves of abaca are more
' pointed and stand more erect than those of banana. Cross sections of abaca stalk at
right.

U. S. DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE

J&jtmu

Figure 5---Sketch showing botanical relations of the family Musaceae. Fig-
ures in circles indicate approximate number of species in each genus.
(From Reynolds: "The Banana." Courtesy Houghton Mifflin Company.)

The stalk of the abaca plant is composed of a fleshy, fiberless central core--the true stem--
surrounded by overlapping leaf sheaths, which arise at or near the base and extend nearly to the
top (fig. 6). The outer leaf sheaths are the shorter and older; the younger ones push up through
the center, each new one higher than the preceding. When sheath formation is complete the flower
bud develops and produces a cluster of flowers similar to those of the banana. The flowers are
first enclosed in a cone, each cluster of flowers being covered by a reddish brownish to green
bract. The first bracts that open contain the female flowers from which the fruits develop; the
outer bracts only contain male flowers. (25)

The plant grows more slowly than the banana to a height of 15 to 25 feet, bearing open
leaves, or blades 4 to 8 feet long at the top. The stalk may attain a diameter of 5 to 12 inches.
It consists of 12 to 25 sheaths, which vary in thickness and width depending on their position in
the stalk. Those on the outside rise from the base of the core but do not extend to the top, where-
as those on the inside rise at varying points slightly above the base and reach the top. Only the
central sheaths are exactly the same length as the stalk.

ABACA--A CORDAGE FIBER

Figure 6.--A, Fruit and flower bud of abaca. The fruits grow in clusters like the "hands" in banana. Normally the mature fruits are
about the size of a man's thumb. B, Cross sections from (a) mature and (b) immature stalks cut high up on the stalk. Central core
of mature stalk is fleshy and fiberless; central core of immature stalk is composed of unfolded leaves.

U. S. DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE

Figure 7. —Cross section of abaca leaf sheath. The sheath consists of three layers, but the fiber
of commerce is obtained only from the outer one.

Each sheath is composed of three layers: an outer, from which most of the fiber is ob-
tained; a middle, which is the source of some fine white fiber of lower tensile strength than that
of the outer layer; and an inner, which contains no fiber (fig. 7).

Apparently few, if any, comprehensive studies of the physiology and development of the
abaca root have been made; yet in view of the "tip over" plants found so frequently in the Cen-
tral American plantations, root studies would seem to be worth while.

Sherman (168) reported that the roots penetrate but a relatively short distance into the sur-
rounding soil, and Espino and Novero (65) stated that abaca is a surface feeder, most of its roots
lying between 15 and 25 cm. below the surface of the ground and deep cultivation may injure the
roots. An illustration of root development in abaca is shown in figure 8.

In 1911 Copeland (45) reported the results of some experiments on the physiology of the
root and measurements of its growth. The root cap, he states, ranges in length from 0. 5 to 1.5
mm. and the growing region, measured from the extreme tip, is usually less than 5 mm. in
length. Thus the greater part of the elongating region lies outside the root cap. This fact, to-
gether with the absence of a hard hypodermis and the presence of root hairs, leaves the roots
exposed to all the possible hazards of their environment.

Copeland reported that the general average daily absorption of water per root is intimately
related to the rate of transpiration, the hours of most rapid absorption following closely upon
those in which water is given off most rapidly. He gives the transpiration or daily loss of weight
of plants growing in cans as varying from 630 grams daily by a plant with a leaf area of 1, 750 sq.
cm. to 1, 350 grams daily by a plant with a leaf area of 7, 100 sq. cm. Copeland's leaf area fig-
ures would apply to relatively small stalks as a medium size mature stalk would have a leaf area
of possibly 40, 000 sq. cm. , and would transpire a relatively larger amount of water.

The root measurements showed an average rate of growth of somewhat more than 6 mm. per
day. Copeland stated that in a good moist soil the roots of neighboring plants as ordinarily planted
will begin to overlap before the plants are a year old and that there is active competition between
the roots of mature plants.

TECHNICAL DESCRIPTION

Musa textilis Ne'e, 1801

Musa sylvestris Colla, 1820

Musa abaca Perr. 1825

Musa troglodytarum textoria Blanco, 1837

Musa mindanensis "Rumph. " Miquel, 1855 (46)

Trunk cylindrical; stoloniferous; leaves narrow-oblong, deltoid at base, round or «cute at
apex, bright green above, glaucous beneath (150). Length of mature blade from 162 to 200 cm. ,
width from 25 to 30 cm. , petiole from 60 to 70 cm. (175). Inflorescence small drooping spike,

ABACA--A CORDAGE FIBER

ROOT EXTENSION (FEET)

Figure 8>--Root development of a six year, seven months old abaca plant of the Bungulanon variety grown in Honduras. Courtesy Tela

Railroad Co., La Lima, Honduras.

fertile flowers toward base, sterile staminate flowers toward apex; flowers small, arranged in
dense, two-rowed fascicles, in three-ranked spirals; 9 to 10 fertile flowers in a fascicle and
from 3 to 6 hands in an inflorescence (175); male flowers deciduous; calyx five-lobed. Mature
fruits very small, 5 to 7 cm. long, 2 to 5 cm. thick, green, three-angled, curved, thick-skinned,
and filled with black seeds; pulp white; bitter to the taste.

CLIMATIC REQUIREMENTS

Abaca is a strictly tropical plant, and it cannot be grown successfully except under tropi-
cal conditions. Even in the Philippines it is not cultivated as far north as Manila, except on a
small plantation near Laguna de Bay, and it is doubtful if it would grow satisfactorily in regions
with an average temperature of less than 72° F. (74). Although abaca is produced in the Philip-
pines at altitudes as high as 3,000 feet above sea level, the yields at these altitudes are not high;
in fact, the temperature is too low for the perfect development of the plant at elevations of more
than 1,000 to 1,600 feet (74).

Abaca grows best where the atmosphere is warm and humid and the rainfall is abundant
and evenly distributed. Even a few weeks of dry weather will check the growth of the plants, and
abaca cannot be grown successfully even in tropical regions where rainy seasons are followed
by long dry seasons. Perhaps the exacting climatic together with exacting soil requirements
more than any other factors gave the Philippines its monopoly of this valuable product of inter-
national trade for more than a century.

Dewey (52) mentioned an evenly distributed rainfall of 60 inches or more, together with a
continuously warm temperature, as essential to the successful growth of abaca.

In the great abaca-producing regions of the Philippines --Albay, Ambos Camarines, Mindan-
ao, and the eastern coasts of Samar and Leyte--the best abaca is grown in the sections charac-
terized by a total annual rainfall of 108. 9 inches, heaviest in November -February and lightest
in March- June, with no dry season; a humidity range of 78 to 88 percent, and an average tem-
perature'of less than 80. 6° F. (151).

Table 2 shows the annual rainfall and temperature for some of the abaca-producing regions
of the Philippines.

U. S. DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE

TABLE 2. — Annual temperature and rainfall data for some abaca-producing regions in the Philippine

Islands (73)

Number
of years
averaged

Temper-
ature

Days

Rainfall

Albay

La Car lota (Negros)

Mamburao ( Mindoro) ........

Iloilo

Cebu

Tamontaca (South Mindanao)
Davao

6
10
2
4
6
2
2

°C.

26.05
26.5

Inches

218.5

118.42

154.3

103.65

147.3

124.65

152.6

71.84

161

58.88

121.3

76.38

187

79.82

Typhoons, which are common in the Islands, take a heavy toll of the abaca crop. In Davao,
however, typhoons are practically unknown, and it is this fact, together with the fertile soil and
the abundant and evenly distributed rainfall, as well as the competent management, that made
Davao the most important abaca-producing province.

In Central America all the abaca plantations are on flat to gently sloping land, 3^ which in
its natural state is poorly drained and subject to flooding from the sudden rise of the tropical
rivers. Expensive drainage systems have been installed to prevent the drowning of the crops.
In Panama and Costa Rica heavy rains are sometimes accompanied by tropical winds which re-
sult in "blowdowns. " These have been estimated to affect about 10% of the acreage in bad years.
Most of the stalk material from such blowdowns can be salvaged by immediately harvesting if
the areas are not too big but it results in some disrupture of the regular farm management pro-
gram .

The following observations on rainfall and temperature in the Central American plantations
were made by Saleeby3^ on an inspection tour in 1946.

Panama. --At Almirante the average annual rainfall during the years 1936-46 was 90. 54
inches. It was as evenly distributed throughout the year as in the best abaca-producing districts
of the Philippines The least rainfall in any one year during this period was 52. 70 inches, the
heaviest 142. 36. Usually the heaviest rains occurred in November and December and again in
June and July.

Costa Rica. --The two projects, one at Monte Verde and the other at Good Hope, are only
about 9 miles apart and have much the same climate. The temperature seldom rises above 90° F.
or falls below 62 . The average annual rainfall at Monte Verde during the years 1936-46 was
about 135 inches. Rainfall is heaviest from October to January and again in June and July. The
amount and distribution of rainfall are usually favorable for the growth of abaca, but every few
years there are destructive floods at Monte Verde following exceptionally heavy rains.

Honduras. --The Honduran project, located in the Guaymas district of northern Honduras,
has a temperature range of 55° to 95° F. , a range which would not be considered favorable for
abaca in the Philippines. However, Saleeby states that the minimum of 55° is not considered low
enough to affect adversely either the growth of the plant or the quality of the fiber. Rainfall for
1943-45 varied from 70 to 80 inches. It was not evenly distributed, for there was a distinct dry
season in February, March, and April, when there was little or no precipitation.

Rainfall records for the Guaymas district for 1927 to 1931, as reported by the Tela Rail-
road Company,36 were:

1927 88. 40 inches

1928 107. 81 "

1929 84. 01 "

1930 84. 22 ■■

1931 83. 12 "

34 SALEEBY, M. M. REPORT COVERING INSPECTION OF THE FIVE CENTRAL AMERICAN ABACA PROJECTS, SUBMITTED
TO THE UNITED STATES OFFICE OF DEFENSE. 26 pp. Washington, D. C. June 28, 1946. [Processed.]

35 See Footnote No. 34.

36 TELA RAILROAD COMPANY. RESEARCH DEPARTMENT ANNUAL REPORT FOR 1942. La Limas, Honduras. [Unpublished
manuscript. ]

ABACA--A CORDAGE FIBER 23

Guatemala. --The abaca plantation in Guatemala is situated on the north bank of the Motagua
River, near Puerto Barrios. The temperature range, as in Honduras, is 55° - 95° F. The rain-
fall for the years 1942-1945, which was fairly evenly distributed, follows:

1942 143. 65 inches

1943 137. 91 "

1944 107. 35 "

1945 112. 97 "

The retarding influence of drought on abaca is strikingly illustrated by the plantings in
Honduras and Ecuador. As previously stated, three of the four plantations in Ecuador are situ-
ated in a belt where there is practically continuous moisture either as actual rain or as a fine
mist or fog. The fourth plantation at San Jose lies outside of this belt, and from the beginning
of June through October practically no rain falls. During these months the plants almost cease
to grow, and, despite the greater fertility of the soil, the plants at San Jose require many months
more to mature than those on the other plantations.

SOIL REQUIREMENTS

While abaca will grow on a fairly wide range of soils of different textures, there is a
marked difference in its productivity over such a range of textured soils. It is rather difficult
to record specific soil requirements that apply generally to abaca. Abaca is very sensitive to
favorable soil conditions and soil management, and to the climate to which the soils are sub-
jected. This degree of sensitiveness is much more pronounced for the successful culture of
abaca than for many plants. It is much more important and economical to select a good soil
than to try to improve a poor soil by management. It is considered that a slightly higher initial
cost for good land may be better than additional costs each year after planting to improve a
poor soil.

In the first place abaca must have a fertile soil for economic production. Tropical soils
of recent volcanic or alluvial origin are in general the most productive and the first choice for
abaca. The texture and structure of the soils, together with their slope, permeability, and ele-
vation, influence materially the production of the crop. Abaca should be grown on friable loam,
very fine sandy loam, or silty clay loam soils which have permeability, slope, or elevation that
insures good natural drainage, but such soils must possess the structure to insure good reten-
tion of moisture. Experience has shown at Guaymas, Honduras, that soils with light subsoils
must be avoided because they are too droughty in the dry season experienced there. On the other
hand, because of the poorer natural drainage and heavier more uniform rainfall conditions ex-
perienced on abaca plantations in eastern Costa Rica, the heavier soils with somewhat lighter
subsoils are more productive as they insure drainage. Good drainage is essential to successful
abaca culture, for abaca will not tolerate a water-logged soil. Except for short periods after
heavy rains, the water table should always be more than 3 feet below surface.

Sandy soils or soils with underlying strata of gravel that permit a rapid percolation may
dry out too quickly to meet the demands of the plant for a large and continuous supply of mois-
ture, and should be avoided. Likewise, stiff clays that break or crack during the dry weather
and become wet and pasty in the wet season, and a soil underlain by a hardpan which impedes
root penetration and interferes with the free movement of water and aeration in the soil, should
also be avoided.

Since abaca can stand neither too dry nor too wet a soil, Hernais and Espino (91) made a
study to determine the optimum soil moisture requirement of the young plant. The results of
the study showed that abaca seedlings could not be grown even in a fertile soil if it had less than
about 50 percent saturation and that the optimum moisture requirement of the young plant lies
somewhere between 60 and 80 percent, probably about 70 percent, of saturation.

Abaca will make its best growth on proper soil types following the removal of a virgin
forest, because the crop benefits from the accumulation of humus and the physical soil factors
common to newly cleared land. Large blocks of such soils for modern plantation installation
are difficult to find. Hence it is usually necessary to select land that may have been earlier
cleared and cropped and then abandoned and grown up to bush, or to select areas of somewhat
less desirable soil factors.

PHILIPPINE ISLANDS

The Philippine Government has published reports on soil surveys of eleven provinces in
the Islands. These include the provinces of Bulacan, Rizal, Cavite, Batangas, Pampanga,

24 U. S. DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE

Tarlac, Pangasinan, Nueva Ecija, Iloilo, Laguna, and Bataan (14). Of these only Cavite has
ever ranked as a leading abaca-producing province, and the bunchy top disease practically wiped
out the industry there many years ago.

The three types of soil on which best results with abaca are obtained in the Philippines are
(1) moist, mellow loams of volcanic origin; (2) alluvial plains subject to some overflow by
streams or rivers; and (3) moist and well-drained loams (60).

In Albay, once the leading abaca-producing province of- the Philippines, and in the Camarines
and Sorsogon, provinces noted for the quality of their fiber, the finest abaca is grown on the low-
er slopes of old volcanoes where the soil, derived from the disintegration of volcanic rock and
the deposit of volcanic ash, is a rich, mellow loam. In Leyte some of the best fiber is grown on
the lowlands where the soil is a heavy silt loam of alluvial origin.

A scientific study of the soils of Davao has recently been made by Mariano (114). He re-
ports that the premier abaca-producing soil of Davao is Tugbok clay loam, which occupies an
area of 217,286 acres, or 4. 5 percent of the area of the province. It lies southwest of Davao
City at the foot of Mount Apo in gently rolling country. The soil, of volcanic origin, is reddish
in color, deep, and well drained. It was on this soil that the Japanese had most of their planta-
tions.

Kidapawan clay loam, which comprises 13,205 acres, is not inferior to Tugbok clay loam
as an abaca soil, but the topography is rougher. Miral clay loam, comprising 85,012 acres on
the lower slopes of Mount Apo, is also a good abaca soil. At present most of it is covered with
second-growth forests. San Manuel silt loam (333, 092 acres), Cabangan silt loam (271, 149 acres),
and Matina clay (23, 500 acres) are also recommended for abaca.

From this survey it is obvious that there is no lack of land suitable for successful abaca
production in Davao province. In the great island of Mindanao, larger than the State of Maine,
only about ten percent of the land is. cultivated, and parts of Davao, which is one of its largest
provinces, are still practically unexplored ( 124).

Since abaca is grown on the same land for ten to fifteen years without rotation, replanting,
or the application of fertilizer, the soil chosen for the plantation as indicated earlier must have
a high degree of natural fertility. On many of the "lates" or plantations of the Philippines the
same soil has produced abaca for more than fifty years practically without cultivation and with
no fertilization other than the humus returned to the soil from the abaca waste left to ferment on
the ground after the plants are harvested. In the harvesting process the entire plants are cut
down, and because of their size and weight and the consequent expense of transportation, they
are stripped (tuxied) in the field. In harvesting and stripping only about 10 to 15 percent of the
material of the entire crop, which represents mainly fiber, is removed; the rest is left on the
ground (168). The 85 to 90 percent so left decays rapidly in the warm, humid atmosphere of the
Tropics and becomes incorporated in the soil as humus. Some of the acid produced by the de-
caying waste reacts chemically with the soil minerals, becomes neutralized and forms salts that
may be absorbed by the plants; some of it leaches out; but some of it is directly absorbed by the
plant with- -according to Sherman ( 1 68)- -deleterious effects on both its growth and the quality of
its fiber. This contention of Sherman that abaca waste left on the field produces an acid condition
of the soil that injures the growth of the plant and reduces the quality of the fiber is by no means
shared by all investigators.

Tirona and Argiielles (178), in a comparison of renovated and virgin abaca soils, found that
virgin soil and soils recently planted for the first time are acidic and that the reaction of the
soils tends to become more alkaline as the fields grow older. For example, the soil of a field on
recently cleared ground was more acidic than that of an adjoining field 10 years old, and two
fields, aged, respectively, 20 and 25 years, were less acidic than a neighboring field 7 years
old. This decrease in acidity of old fields is, in the opinion of Tirona and Arguelles, due to the
incorporation in the soil of the decomposed waste left on the ground after harvesting.

From these two opposing points of view, it is apparent that the role of the waste returned
to the soil is a matter that might well be the subject of further study. Over the long term, the
results obtained on soil in Central America, where little of the waste plant material is left in
the field, may offer some interesting data for comparison. In these non-limestone soils, there
is frequently a very shallow surface layer that contains the decaying organic matter and the pH
of it may be much higher than soil an inch or more deeper.

The adaptability of different varieties of abaca to different types of soil and the influence
of soil on the quality of the fiber are other problems that should be studied. Buck (30), from
limited observations, concluded that "the so-called different varieties, at least as far as Cavite
is concerned, depend for their difference upon the nature of the soil in which they are grown. "
The "abacang siniboyas" seemed to grow best on high, rather infertile soil, whereas "Kina-
labaw, " which produces a dark, rather coarse fiber, grows best on low fertile soil.

ABACA--A CORDAGE FIBER 25

Rojales (151) found that the higher the percentage of organic matter in the soil, the greater
was the production of fiber. This is due, he believes, to the fact that the organic matter serves
both as nutrients for the plant and as a reservoir for the storage of moisture.

CENTRAL AMERICA

The best abaca soils of Central America are for the most part a very fine sandy loam to
silty clay loam and might be referred to as alluvial bottoms of recent origin. They are among
the best soils in Central America. This classification was made by soil survey specialists of
the United States Department of Agriculture.37

The soil of the Panama plantation along the Changuinola River is a mellow loam, but that
farther from the river is of heavier texture, approaching clay loam. In Costa Rica the best soil
range from fine sandy loam, silt loam to silty clay loam with poorer soils of heavier loams to
clay loam on the sections farthest from the river. In general, the better soil on the Honduran
project are silty clay loams, and the loams with sandy subsoils are too droughty for best results;
the best soil on the Guatemalan project are silt loam, silty clay loam and silty clay formed by
silt deposits from the Motagua River, which become somewhat heavier away from the river.

Since most of the Central American plantings were made on derelict banana plantations,
Wardlaw's (188), remarks in respect to banana soils are worth noting. Of the soils which he
considers "intermediate" in respect to value for growing bananas, he states that the rich layer
of disintegrated vegetation present at the time of planting gradually disappears, and when this
occurs production declines.

The relation of disease incidence to soil acidity in the abaca soils of Central America has
never been adequately investigated, but Wardlaw (188) states that whenever Fusarium cubense
(Panama disease) is present in soils of low pH, e.g. , 5. 5., it appears to spread rapidly; in
neutral or slightly alkaline soils there is usually less disease. Many banana soils in Central
America are said to be deficient in lime (188), but the best and longest producing soils have an
adequate supply, as evidenced by pH values of 6 or above.3** In a soil having pH value of 6.6 or
highe'r, other conditions being favorable, banana plants may resist the disease and continue to
give high yields for 20 years or more.

PROPAGATION AND CULTURE

PROPAGATING MATERIAL

Abaca may be propagated from true seed, suckers, or by division of the bulbous base or
corm- -frequently referred to as "root heads. " The usual way of starting a new plantation or re-
newing an old one is to use either root heads, entire or in sections, or the small suckers that
spring from the corm of the parent plants. In case shortages of propagating material should
develop in the rehabilitation of old plantations or when new areas are opened for abaca produc-
tion, questions might arise in reference to the use of seed in connection with other methods.
Propagation by true seed followed by selection is a useful means of developing new and superior
varieties. Seeds for planting should be extracted from ripe fruit, washed well, and dried. Be-
fore planting they should be soaked overnight, then sown in clean, well-fertilized soil. In one
year the young seedlings, then two or more feet high, may be transplanted in the field. Plants
grown from seed usually require from one to two years longer to mature than those grown from
shoots or rootstocks. Ordinarily they do not breed true to type, and for this reason their use on
large plantations is not recommended, although they have been used.

Suckers are widely used in the Philippines as propagating material, but root heads, entire
or in sections, may have certain advantages over suckers and are preferred in the large com-
mercial plantings of Davao and in Central America. The root divisions (fig. 9), sometimes called
"bits, " "seed pieces, " -or simply "seed, " are taken from strong, vigorously growing, mature
plants. They should be 12 to 15 cm. in diameter at the top and each should contain at least two
healthy buds. Plants developing from the buds of rootstocks are usually stronger and faster
growing than those from suckers. Plants from rootstocks or suckers come true to variety type,
in contrast to plants that come from true seeds.

Large suckers with the pseudo stem attached are frequently used to replace missing hills
or mats. The pseudo stem serves as an upright marker to the new plant. Limited experimental

37 Descriptions of soils from. Abaca Research Reports. Abaca Project, Inter-American Institute of Agricultural Sciences.
Turrialba, Costa Rica. 1951. [Unpubiished.]

38 UNITED FRUIT COMPANY. RESEARCH DATA 1926-1935. [Unpublished.]

U. S. DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE

Figure 9.-- Abaca "seed" or "bit" ready for planting. This section cut out of mat shows
the buds or "eyes" (A, B, Q from which new plants will develop. Abaca is also propa-
gated by the use of suckers, rarely by true seed.

data in Central America has indicated that suckers less than three inches in diameter at the base
do not grow as rapidly as larger, more mature suckers, and also the smaller suckers are more
likely to die in transportation and transplanting. The same experiments have indicated very little
difference in growth between suckers over 3 to 4 inches in diameter at the base and "bits" from
larger, more mature heads.

PLANTING

In the Philippines the land is cleared for abaca during the period from January to April,
the months in which rain is lightest. In clearing forests, the underbrush is cut, and the debris

ABACA--A CORDAGE FIBER

is burned if the weather will permit. Planting takes place as soon as the rains begin. After plant-
ing, the larger trees are felled and left to rot on the ground (fig. 10).

On the better managed plantations the plants are set at regular intervals in rows, the dis-
tance between them depending somewhat on the variety and the conditions under which they are
grown. The plants are usually set from 8 to 10 feet apart each way in the rows, this arrange-
ment giving about 700 to 450 plants per acre (74). In Davao the distance between the hills is usu-
ally 2. 74 meters (9 feet) in a square (2j. For the Maguindanao variety, however, which is a very
rank grower, the distance is usually 3 meters (10 feet).

In Central America experiments have been made to determine the best distance to space the
plants under the conditions prevailing there. In these experiments plants were set at equal dis-
tances each way in the form of a square, and also in the form of a hexagon, since the hexagon
gives a greater number of plants to the acre. Of the plantings made 10 X 10, 12 X 12, 14 X 14,
and 16 X 16 feet in squares, the 14 X 14 foot spacing appeared to be the best. The 14 X 14 foot
square gave 222 plant hills or mats per acre; the 14 X 14 foot hexagon, 257 mats.39

Holes large enough to accommodate the seed pieces are dug, a seed piece is placed in each
and covered with soil to a depth usually of 2 to 4 inches. The soil around the seed piece is pressed
down firmly to prevent it from drying out too quickly in dry weather and to keep water from
collecting around it in wet weather.

In the Philippines a cover crop, usually cowpeas (Vigna sinensis), is sown in the plantation
just before or just after the abaca is planted. This discourages the growth of weeds, keeps the
ground cool and moist around the young plants, and furnishes nitrogen to the soil. The small
grower who must depend upon his land for food sometimes grows beans or rice along with the
abaca during the first year of the new plantation, and if these crops are not planted too close to
the abaca, this practice is not particularly harmful.

The question of shade for the plants and its effect on the fiber have been the subject of much
discussion and some experimentation. In Davao abaca is usually grown without shade, but in the
provinces that are subject to strong winds trees are used extensively for windbreaks as well as
shade.

Figure 10. —Field in the Philippine Islands newly cleared and planted to abaca. The abaca plants soon shade the ground

and the forest refuse decays.

39 UNITED FRUIT COMPANY. ABACA PRODUCTION. San Jose, Costa Rica. 1942-1943. [Unpublished manuscript.]

261543 O - 54 - 3

U. S. DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE

Espino (62) found that plants exposed to sun and wind yielded almost double the quantity of
fiber produced by those under shade and exposed to little wind.

Youngberg (194) reported that fiber produced on an open plantation was much stronger than
that from a shaded one, the difference being 2,279 grams per gram meter in favor of the fiber
from the open plantation.

Copeland (45) stated that plants under shade grow more slowly and develop less leaf area
than those in full sunlight. The leaves grow more slowly and cease growth earlier. The average
daily growth of fully illuminated plants and of plants grown in shade were, respectively, 7. 9 mm
and 4. 7 mm.

Cevallos (43) found that when showers were frequent and soil moisture was adequate, the
plants in full sunlight grew more rapidly and appeared thriftier than those grown in partial or in
fairly complete shade. On the other hand, in a season of unprecedented dryness the growth of the
plants in shade so far exceeded that of the plants in full sunlight that one might reasonably have
concluded that shade is essential to the successful culture of the plant.

No doubt Cevallos is right in his conclusion that shading the plant may affect the crop fa-
vorably or unfavorably according to local climatic conditions. "In some localities," he states,
"the use of shade ... is necessary, because there are frequent droughts and baguios, while in
other places, for example, in some parts of southern Mindanao, where there are plenty of rain,
constant humidity of the atmosphere, and proper temperature of the air and of the soil through-'
out the year, the use of shade may be dispensed with altogether. "

In the Central American plantings abaca is grown without shade.

CULTURAL OPERATIONS

On thousands of small farms in the Philippine Islands where abaca is planted in irregular
formation between the felled trees and underbrush, cultivation is difficult even after the trees
and stumps have disintegrated. In such cases it usually consists in no more than an occasional
cutting of the larger weed growth with a bolo or machete. On the better managed plantations the
plants are set in rows and cultivated until the heavy shade of the leaves prevents the growth of
weeds. On the larger Japanese plantations cover crops were extensively used.

On the Central American plantations frequent cleaning of the planting and circling of the
plants up to 18 months from planting is regarded as imperative. After the plants have once dom-
inated the natural bush growth, however, two or three cleanings annually are generally con-
sidered sufficient in a well-established planting.

Pruning or thinning of the mat may be advisable if stalks become over-crowded; however,
this is a debatable question. In Central America populations of eight to twelve so-called mother
stalks with their suckers or followers per mat are not considered too crowded after the planting
is well established. When periodic harvesting (usually four harvests a year) is under way, prun-
ing usually consists only in the removal of excess young suckers. The United Fruit Company has
done some fairly extensive research on methods of thinning. These experiments included com-
parisons of yields from unthinned mats and from mats thinned to five, ten, and fifteen mother
plants. The results, presented in the following tabulation, show that the highest yields were ob-
tained from the mats that contained the greatest number of mother plants with their followers;
i. e. , those thinned to 15 mother plants and those not thinned at all.

Total weight of stalks per mat (pounds)

Mats pruned to —

1944

1945

1946

1947

1948

1949

Total

10 and followers ....
15 and followers ....
No pruning.

290
407
445
248

460

714

968

1,138

364

734
892
827

640
645
822
791

379
572
726

800

403
395
270
351

2,536

3,467
4,123
4,155

PRODUCING PERIOD

The plant stalks grow and reach maturity in two to three years, depending on the variety,
the care given the young plants, and the soil and climatic conditions. The yield from the first
harvest is very small, but when the new plantings reach the age of four to five years they produce
a full crop of mature stalks, which may yield from one-half to two tons of dry fiber per acre (115).
According to Saleeby (157), maximum production continues until the plants are seven to eight years

ABACA--A CORDAGE FIBER 29

old. Mendiola (1 19) states that "the yield of an abaca field assumes that of a curve beginning at a
low point at the age of two or three years, according to variety, rising very rapidly through the
fourth, fifth, and sixth years when it begins to decline ..."

The length of time that an abaca plantation may continue maximum production is of more
than academic interest to those concerned in the growing of the fiber in Central America, for,
in 1950, after six years in production these plantations were near or past their peak. Rejuvena-
tion methods that have been discussed include replanting, butcher harvesting, and rotation.

There is also a difference of opinion as to the period that abaca will continue to produce a
profitable crop without replanting. Saleeby says that it is generally considered advisable to re-
plant after the twelfth to fifteenth year. Edwards, however, found that the consensus among
the Philippine abaca planters appeared to be that the best results are obtained if the old fields
are cleared and replanted after a producing period of about ten years. The length of the profita-
ble producing period will vary according to the variety grown and the conditions under which it
is grown. Some varieties mature more slowly and continue to produce for a longer period than
others.

FERTILIZATION

Tests to determine the value of fertilizers for abaca are not new to the Philippines. The
Spaniards instituted a series of fertilizer tests with abaca in 1895 (44), and the director of the
Government Experiment Station at Cebu went so far as to analyze the bat guano that was found
in caves of the islands and to test its value on a number of crops. It was this scientist, who after
a careful study of the soils in the Islands, declared, "The exaggerated fertility of Philippine
soils is utterly illusory. In Cebu the lands most cultivated are completely exhausted, " a state-
ment which may well be weighed in connection with the inferior growth of abaca in the old-pro-
ducing provinces where fields have been cropped to abaca for generations without fertilization
other than the return of the plant waste to the land.

Sherman (168) found the results of this practice of growing abaca on the same land without
rotation or fertilization to be a heavy and continuous exhaustion of minerals necessary to the
well-being of the plant, and a permanently acid condition of the soil. From an analysis of the
ash of the fiber he found over 3 percent, or an estimated 5,000,000 kilograms of mineral con-
stituents in the yearly Philippine abaca crop (normally about 1,250,000 bales, prewar), of which
over half was composed of potash and lime salts alone. Thus he estimates that there is an annual
loss to the soil of nearly 5,000 tons of mineral constituents essential to abaca production. He
states that potash is probably the most important mineral constituent required by abaca for its
growth and development, and he found that the percentage of potash is so uniformly low in the
Bicol soils as seriously to affect the growth of the plants. Phosphates, though generally present
in Philippine soils, were deficient in some Bicol districts, as were also lime and magnesia. The
Davao soils, on the other hand, probably as a result of the plowing, cultivation, rotation, and
also because of the fewer years that they had been cropped, compared favorably with the accept-
ed standard for a good, well-balanced soil. The better condition of the soil, the greater yield of
fiber per acre, and the uniformly high quality of the fiber in Davao, Sherman attributed to the
modern agricultural methods used.

Tirona and Argiielles (178) determined the amount of essential plant food elements removed
as fiber constituents alone from a hectare of soil over a period of 20 years in Davao fields. In the
cleaning of fiber of good grade in Davao, they stated that about 98. 5 percent of the plant is left in
the field and only 1. 5 percent is removed as fiber. An analysis of fiber of excellent cleaning made
by the Philippine Bureau of Science showed an average of 0. 080 percent nitrogen (N), 0. 012 per-
cent phosphoric anhydride (P2O5), 0.428 percent potash (K2O), and 0. 164 percent calcium oxide
(CaO). The yield of fiber of good cleaning over a 20-year period, they point out, is about 43,933
kilos per hectare (39,114 pounds per acre). On the basis of the foregoing percentages, this
weight of fiber removed from a hectare of soil 35. 146 kilos (31. 3 pounds per acre) of nitrogen,
5. 272 kilos (4. 7 pounds per acre) of phosphoric anhydride, 188. 034 kilos (167. 4 pounds per acre)
of potash, and 72. 050 kilos (64. 2 pounds per acre) of calcium oxide.

Tirona and Argiielles state that with the exception of potash, nutrients in such quantities con-
stitute so small a fraction- of the available plant food in a hectare of soil after 20 years of cropping,
that it can be readily replaced by a ton (about 900 pounds per acre) of fertilizer composed of 3. 51
percent nitrogen, 0. 53 percent phosphoric acid, 18. 80 percent potash, and 7. 03 percent lime.
They concluded, therefore, that the quantity of essential plant food elements removed from a
hectare of soil as fiber constituents alone in 20 years is unimportant. These results and conclu-
sions are based on the hand field- stripping method and not on methods where the whole stalk is

40 EDWARDS, H. T. Unpublished notes, [n.d.] (U. S. Bat. Plant Indus., Div. Cotton and Other Fiber Crops and Dis.)

30 U. S. DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE

removed from the field for cleaning as practiced in Central America. Because of the very small
amount of available magnesium found in the oldest fields, Tirona and Arguelles concluded that a
deficiency of available magnesium may be one of the limiting factors in the growth of second
plantings.

Richmond (149) reported that 90 percent of the green weight of an abaca stalk is juice, which,
on evaporation, was found to contain 2. 62 percent of solids, or 275 grams (0. 605 pound) from a
stalk weighing 15, 876 kilos (34, 995 pounds). An analysis of this solid matter, obtained by evapo-
rating the expressed liquid, showed:

Percent

Total nitrogen 0. 40

Total phosphoric acid (P2O5) 1. 86

Potash as K20 30. 56

Richmond concluded that the presence of nearly 1 percent (2. 62 percent solids X 30. 56 K£0 = 0. 8)
of available potash in the juice, as compared to only 5 percent in wood ashes, the best of potash
fertilizers, shows the value of this constituent to the growing plant, and the juice should be re-
turned to the soil. Abaca waste, on the other hand, he found to have a rather low fertilizing
value, and he stated that its removal in a dry state would cause no appreciable loss of plant nu-
trients. In support of this belief he offered the following analysis:

Percent

Total nitrogen 0. 52

Total phosphoric acid (P2O5) 046

Potash as K20 661

Lime (CaO) 238

While Richmond's results are valuable for understanding the fertilizer problem, the eco-
nomical return of the juice to the soil with modern methods of factory cleaning presents difficult
problems.

In 1895 the Boletin Oficial Agricola de Filipinas, which carried reports of research being
conducted at the agricultural experiment stations of the Islands, published the following analysis
of abaca (44):

The trunk of the plant is 92 percent water. Of the dry weight, 16 percent is ash; of the ash,
potassium and sodium make up 27. 5 percent, and a total of 70 percent is soluble. In the fiber on
the market 14 percent is water; the ash is only 4 percent of the dry weight; and of the ash, potas-
sium and sodium make 28 percent, 51 percent is soluble, and 15 percent is silica.

The author of this analysis concluded that the plant obviously needs much potash, and he
recommends that the waste from harvesting and stripping be returned to the soil.

On the basis of an estimated 44, 000 pounds of stalks removed annually per acre, as is done
under favorable conditions in Central America, and discussed in the second paragraph following,
this early analysis would indicate a total dry weight annually of 3, 520 pounds per acre, of which
563. 2 pounds is ash containing 154. 88 pounds of potassium and sodium.

Edwards reported that Sherman found the abaca stalk to contain from 90 to 93 percent of
wa'ter and from 7 to 10 percent of dry matter.

Recent analyses (1949-51) made by the United Fruit Company in Honduras on one stalk of
Bungulanon, 6 feet long, weighing 60 pounds, gave the following results:

Percent

Moisture 93. 12

Nitrogen 0. 0349 - 0. 0449

Phosphorus 0062 - . 0089

Potassium (K) 5848 - . 6364

Total ash 1.15 - 1.28

Silica 18 - .23

Iron and aluminum oxide 053 - . 067

Lime (CaO) 107 - .112

41 See Footnote No. 40.

ABACA--A CORDAGE FIBER 31

One thousand pounds of abaca stalk will, therefore, contain:

Pounds

Nitrogen 0. 349 - 0. 449

Phosphorus 062 - . 089

Potassium (K) 5. 848 - 6. 364

On the basis of this analysis the loss of potash from the soils of Central America, where
the whole stalks are taken from the field, must be tremendous. With bananas only about 25, 000
pounds of fruit are removed from an acre in a year, which represents the removal of about 40
pounds of potash. With abaca, an estimated or calculated 44,000 pounds of stalk are removed,
which represents the loss to the soil of over 250 pounds of potash per acre per year. In the
Philippines, where abaca is grown for fifty years or more on the same land without rotation or
fertilization (not recommended), only the fiber or the outer fiber-bearing part of the stalks is
removed; the rest is left on the ground to decay and become incorporated in the soil, whereas
in Central America the whole stalk is removed. These different methods would account for a
much more rapid decrease in the fertility in Central America than in the Philippines and was
emphasized in discussions in Washington, D.C. in 1949. 42 Some crops in the United States have
as high a percentage of potash in the leaf material removed, but they do not yield as much dry
matter per acre as abaca.

Abaca is classed as a "poor" industry, and the price of the product in normal times is not
such as to justify continuous feeding with high-priced fertilizers. Early in the development of
the Central American program it was estimated that each application of fertilizer would have
to raise production more than 300 pounds per acre to justify its cost.

The fertilizer used for abaca in Central America has been primarily, if not entirely, a
nitrogenous one. In the beginning sodium nitrate was applied three or four times a year at the
annual rate of 400 pounds per acre, which was the standard banana application.

Abaca grows slowly at first, and fertilization may be necessary to enable it to resist the
encroachment of competing vegetation. Birdsall made a field inspection of the use of fertilizers
for stimulating the growth of abaca both in young and in old plantings. He states that when the
young plants have reached 12 to 15 inches in height and have leafed out, they may enter a phase
of stagnant growth, in which case they take on a yellowish hue. This condition usually indicates
a deficiency of nitrogen. In older plantings also, when, because of blowdowns, overharvesting,
or for some other reason, an excessive amount of sunlight reaches the mat, grass grows rap-
idly and because of its shallower roots is able to compete successfully with abaca for the nitro-
gen that is available. In such cases it is advisable to fertilize.

The nitrogenous fertilizer carriers recommended by Birdsall are urea, ammonium sul-
fate, ammonium nitrate, calcium cyanamide, and sodium nitrate, containing, respectively,
about 46 percent, 21 percent, 35 percent, 20 percent, and 16 percent of nitrogen.

In new abaca plantings Birdsall recommends that the first application should be made 10 to
12 weeks after planting and that it should approximate either 2. 5 ounces of ammonium sulfate or
calcium cyanamide; 3 ounces of sodium nitrate; 1. 5 ounces of ammonium nitrate; or 1.0 ounce
of urea per hill. The second application should be made 16 to 18 weeks after planting and should
be increased 50 percent over that of the first application. The third application should be made
6 to 8 weeks after the second, and the amount applied should be double that of the first application.

To stimulate growth in the older plantations, from three to four applications of fertilizer
in the amounts of 5 ounces of ammonium sulfate or calcium cyanamide, 6 ounces of sodium nitrate,
3 ounces of ammonium nitrate, or 2 ounces of urea per hill should be made. The fertilizer should
be applied in equal amounts at intervals of 6 to 8 weeks. Three applications should suffice.

The United Fruit Company in 1949 started a series of fertilizer tests with abaca in Honduras.
These tests were designed to show the response of abaca to the three principal plant foods, nitro-
gen, potash, and phosphorus. Fertilization began in July 1949, and more than 3, 000 monthly
growth-rate measurements were made for each treatment from September through December
1949.** The results as shown in table 3 are inconclusive. By the end of December the response
to nitrogen was apparent. The young plants were robust and appeared to have good rooting sys-
tems.

42 PAN AMERICAN UNION. MEETING ON INTER-AMERICAN FIBER PROBLEMS. 19 pp. Washington, D. C. June, 17, 1949.
[Processed.]

43 CARREON, P. R., 'and BIRDSALL, B. J. ABACA GROWING FOR BEGINNERS. 22 pp. [n. d.) (Prepared by Technical
Staff, NAFCO in Davao and U. S. Off. Foreign Agr. Relat.) [Mimeographed.]

44 UNITED FRUIT COMPANY. TELA RAILROAD COMPANY RESEARCH DEPARTMENT REPORT FOR 1949. La Lima,
Honduras. [Unpublished manuscript.]

U. S. DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE

TABLE 3. — Rate of stalk growth of abaca in fertilizer test plots, Cebu Farm, Guaymas District,

Honduras

Month

Check (no
fertilizer)

Nitrogen
only

Nitrogen
and potash

Nitrogen and
phosphorus

Feet

0.486
.298
.556
.400

Feet

0.496
.326

.561
.417

Feet

0.495
.306
.575
.408

Feet

0.488
.302

.555

.405

Total

1.740

1.800

1.784

1.750

100

103.4

102.5

100.6

In a study of the salt and fertilizer requirements of young abaca in the Philippines, Espino
and Viado (67) reached the following tentative conclusions:

(1) That both calcium nitrate and ammonium sulfate are beneficial to the growth of the young
abaca plant.

(2) That ammonium sulfate is a far better source of nitrogen for this plant than sodium nitrate.

(3) That to promote vigorous vegetative development of the young abaca a moderate appli-
cation of either potassium sulfate or double superphosphate should be accompanied by a rela-
tively heavy application of ammonium sulfate. The amount of ammonium sulfate should be two
or three times as much as the potassium sulfate or the double superphosphate.

Espino and Cruz (63) found that the roots of abaca plants absorbed less readily complete
culture solutions containing ammonium sulfate than complete culture solutions without it. They
found also that the culture solution most readily absorbed had a medium amount of either mono-
potassium phosphate or calcium nitrate and a relatively high content of magnesium sulfate. On
the basis of their findings, they estimated that the roots of a single abaca plant of the Maguindanao
variety would absorb daily about 0. 23 kilogram of the culture solution found to be most readily
absorbed and that the roots of the whole clump (nine large and three medium-sized plants) would
absorb daily about 2.4 kilograms of the solution.

Peyronnet (1 35) made a study of the growth of abaca (itom variety) in sand to which various
nutrient solutions were applied. At the end of 6 months the plants that received Pfeffer's solu-
tion (calcium nitrate, ferric chloride, potassium chloride, primary potassium phosphate, potas-
sium nitrate, and magnesium sulfate) had made good, strong growth, as had also those that re-
ceived Shive's solution (calcium nitrate, ferrous phosphate, primary potassium phosphate, and
magnesium sulfate), and Tottingham's solution (calcium nitrate, ferrous phosphate, primary
potassium phosphate, potassium nitrate, and magnesium sulfate). Of the three solutions,
Tottingham's gave the best growth.

No calcium. --A group of plants that received a solution containing potassium nitrate, fer-
rous phosphate, primary potassium phosphate, and magnesium sulfate, but no calcium were
stunted and the leaves turned a deep yellow. None of the plants lived more than three months.
Peyronnet concluded that while calcium is not an actual element of protoplasm it obviously acts
in some way as a protective agent.

No phosphorus. --Plants that received calcium nitrate, ferric chloride, potassium nitrate,
and magnesium sulfate but no phosphate were the only group that showed no striking exterior
symptoms of physiological trouble during the first six months of growth. Nevertheless, all ex-
cept one died within six months.

No magnesium. --The plants from which magnesium were withheld were among the first
to show symptoms of physiological imbalance. These plants received calcium nitrate, ferrous
phosphate, primary potassium phosphate, and potassium sulfate. After three months without
magnesium the plants became chlorotic and the leaves began to droop and die.

No potassium. --Plants given calcium nitrate, ferrous phosphate, calcium phosphate
(dibasic), and magnesium sulfate but no potassium, were flaccid and weak. At the end of six
months all the plants were stunted, but the most marked result of the deficiency of potassium
was a lack of rigidity in the central stem and central nerves of the leaves. The plants were soft
and weak and the leaves were flabby.

Peyronnet suggests that this lack of rigidity in plants that receive no potassium or too little
may be one of the causes of the lack of strength of the fibers, and he remarks, "It should not be

ABACA--A CORDAGE FIBER 33

forgotten that potash--potassium oxide - -constitutes about 40 percent of the mineral matter of the
ash of abaca fiber. " He might have added that a deficiency of potash normally produces a thin-
walled plant cell, and such cells are generally associated with lack of strength.

The Philippine Government carried on fertilizer tests with abaca, though on a limited
scale, for many years. In 1927 the results of tests to determine the fertilizers best suited to
bring about growth of young abaca plants were reported ( 1 38). The plants that received calcium
phosphate and potassium sulfate at the rate of 300 kilos each per hectare (267 pounds per acre)
showed the greatest increase both in length of stalks and in number of suckers produced. Next
were the plants that received calcium phosphate alone, and last were those that received sodi-
um nitrate, calcium phosphate, and potassium sulfate combined, at the rate of 240, 300 and 60
kilos, respectively, of each per hectare (214, 267, and 53 pounds per acre).

In 1928 (1 39) tests were made on young abaca and on an old plantation of the Itom variety.
The results on young abaca were:

78 kilos (69 pounds per acre) of P,0. with 29 kilos (26 pounds per acre) of K?Oper
hectare, a yield of 429. 33 kilos (382 pounds per acre) of fine fiber per hectare.

12 kilos (11 pounds per acre) of nitrogen with 78 kilos (69 pounds per acre) P2O5 an^
29 kilos (26 pounds per acre) of K2O, a yield of 338 kilos (301 pounds per acre) of fine fiber
per hectare.

78 kilos of P2O5 alone per hectare (69 pounds per acre), a yield of 291. 33 kilos (259
pounds per acre) of fine fiber per hectare.

No fertilizer, a yield of 252.49 kilos (225 pounds per acre) of fine fiber per hectare.

Records were taken 8 months after fertilizer was applied to the old plantation. From a plot
to which a mixture of 200 kilos (440 pounds) of nitrate of soda, 200 kilos (440 pounds) of calcium
phosphate, and 600 kilos (1, 320 pounds) of copra cake were applied at the rate of 400 kilos per
hectare (356 pounds per acre), a yield of 541. 7 kilos (1, 191 pounds) of coarse fiber was obtained.
The yield from the untreated plots averaged 491. 66 kilos of coarse fiber per hectare (438 pounds
per acre). When the same mixture at the rate of 578 kilos per hectare (515 pounds per acre) was
applied, a yield of 285 kilos (627 pounds, of fine fiber was obtained, as compared with 197 kilos
(433 pounds) from the control.

In 1931 the Director of Plant Industry (141) stated that the application of a complete ferti-
lizer at the rate of 19. 4 kilos (17 pounds per acre) of nitrogen, 58. 9 kilos (52 pounds per acre)
of phosphoric acid, and 30 kilos (27 pounds per acre) of potash per hectare gave 1, 168. 8 kilos
per hectare (1 , 041 lbs. per acre) of fiber as compared with 760 kilos (677 lbs. per acre) from the
check plot. In 1932 (142) he reported that the use of fertilizers and the continuous planting and
plowing under of cowpeas before flowering resulted in a considerably higher yield of fiber.

In a publication issued by the Philippine Department of Agriculture and Commerce in 1939
(137) it was stated that "by and large, abaca requires from 600 to 800 kilos per hectare (534 to
712 pounds per acre) of a mixture containing 4 percent nitrogen, 8 percent phosphoric acid, and
12 percent potash. "

Youngberg (138), describing tests for the control of bunchy top, declared: "The resistance
of the partially susceptible varieties . . . can be increased by the use of calcium phosphate or
potassium sulfate, but those fertilizers containing only nitrogen were not satisfactory, although
certain complete fertilizers, containing nitrogen, phosphoric acid and potash (10-6-2) gave fa-
vorable results. "

The fact that the use of certain fertilizers develops an increased degree of disease resist-
ance in the plant is a factor that should not be overlooked.

DISEASES AND INSECT PESTS

PHILIPPINE ISLANDS

For centuries the Filipinos grew abaca without apparently being much troubled by loss
from disease, but in 1937 a survey made by Edwards*' showed abaca diseases to be the most
widely discussed if not the most important factor in the abaca production situation.

"Bunchy top, " which had practically eliminated the abaca industry from the provinces of
Cavite, Laguna, and Batangas, was discovered about 1935 in the Bicol province of Sorsogon,
but the plants infected had been destroyed and no other cases of the disease had been reported.
In Mindoro bunchy top was said to be widespread and to be doing serious damage. In surveying
the situation in Davao, Edwards found it difficult to separate rumor from fact but from his own

45 See Footnote No. 25.

U. S. DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE

observations, he concluded that "unquestionably . . . there are abaca diseases in Davao at the
present time [1937], the infection is spreading, and the situation is one that calls for prompt
and effective action. The different diseases of abaca that are now found, or are believed to be
found, in Davao abaca fields are bunchy top, the 'new disease' [ vascular wilt], mosaic, heart
rot, stem rot, and root rot. "

Bunchy top. --Ocfemia reported in 1930 that bunchy top was the most destructive abaca
disease known in the Philippines (1Z7). All varieties of abaca grown in Davao--Maguindanao,
Bungulanon, Tangongon, and Lauan--were attacked with equal severity (128).

The presence of chlorotic streaks, transparent veins, and parchmentlike areas on the
youngest furled leaves is the most reliable symptom of primary infection (fig. 11) (1Z8). The
affected plants are stunted, the stem thickens, and the top sends out bunchy growths, more or
less in the form of a rosette (fig. 12). The leaves become stiff and brittle, tear along the mar-
gins, and curl upward. Sooner or later the blade dries up and turns black. Fiber from diseased
plants does not develop normally, and is often weaker than that from healthy plants (188).

A plant once affected with this disease never recovers, and when one member of a stool is
attacked, the whole stool perishes. The progress of bunchy top through a planting is slow as
compared to that of mosaic and vascular wilt, yet within ten years the bunchy top disease wiped
out more than 12, 000 hectares (26, 400 acres) of abaca in Cavite alone (31).

Bunchy top is a virus disease transmitted by the brown banana aphid (Pentalonia nigronervosa
Coq. ). This aphid was the only known vector of bunchy top until 1948 when Espino and Ocfemia
(68) stated that a second vector of bunchy top, P_. caladii Van der Goot, had been reported by
Espino in a master's thesis in 1944, but all copies of the thesis and all records of the experi-
ments were burned during the battle for liberation of the Philippines in 1945. These writers state

Figure 11. --Leaves from abaca plant affected with the bunchy top disease. The youngest unfurled
leaves (a and b) of bunchy top-infected plants show indefinite, yellowish-white chlorotic areas
on the blade, especially along the margin. Parchmentlike areas may also be noted as in b; re-
duced size of leaves and curling along the margins are characteristic of the disease, as shown
in c and d. (Photo courtesy of G. 0. Ocfemia.)

ABACA--A CORDAGE FIBER

^^---ss^aiS^fe

Figure 12.--a, Abaca plant affected with bunchy top disease, showing characteristic crowding of leaves into a rosettelike ar-
rangement; b, uninfected, healthy plant. (Photo courtesy of G. 0. Ocfemia.)

that abaca is not a preferred host of P. caladii, however, and probably it is unimportant as a
vector of bunchy top. The virus that causes the bunchy top disease is not transmitted by P.
nigronervosa to its offspring (129), nor is it transmitted through the soil or by mechanical
means, and if seedstocks for replanting are obtained from disease -free fields, plantations
devastated by the disease can be successfully rehabilitated.

In September 1949 Reinking (148), in a cursory examination of conditions in abaca planta-
tions near Davao City, found no evidence of bunchy top in any of the commercial plantings that
he visited, and he states that there have been no reports of its presence there in recent years.
Ocfemia,*6 on the other hand, in a more recent discussion of the disease situation in the Philip-
pines, stated: "In my opinion there are, at the present time, only three major diseases of abaca.
In the descending order of their destructiveness to abaca they are: bunchy-top, mosaic, and
wilt. "

The vascular wilt disease. --In 1939 a "new" disease was taking a heavy toll of abaca in
Davao. In fact, so serious had this disease become that the Japanese sent men to Borneo to in-
vestigate the possibility of starting plantations there.

The cause of abaca wilt in the Philippines, according to Castillo and Celino (37), is Fusa-
rium cubense (F. oxysporum f. cubense). This is the fungus that caused the dreaded "Panama"
disease of banana in Central America and necessitated the abandonment of thousands of acres of
rich banana lands. In the Philippines, however, this organism attacks only the Latundan variety
of banana. and abaca (37). The fungus is especially destructive to abaca at high elevations. It
spreads rapidly, and since it is a soil-borne organism, it may be spread by rain water, by soil
adhering to the feet of men and animals, by dirty or contaminated tools, and by planting corms
and suckers taken from infected fields. At high elevations in Davao the wilt is said to infect abaca

46 OCFEMIA, G. 0. Letter to senior author. Feb. 28, 1950.

36 U. S. DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE

corms through injuries made by the banana borer (Cosmopolites sordidus Ger. ), through old leaf
bases where the stem borer (Odoiporus longicollis Ol. ) has punctured, and through injured buds
and very young suckers (6). The varieties that appear to be most susceptible to the wilt disease
are Magindanao, Lauan-Tangohgon, Balindag, and Bungulanon; the variety Tangongon, on the
other hand, appears to be resistant and has been used to replace susceptible varieties (1 33).

The presence of wilt disease is first apparent as a rotting or blackening at the base of the
pseudostem (31). The rotting seems to work upward, eventually reaching the leaves. There the
dark-brown discoloration follows the veins, often extending from the midrib to the margin. The
formation of these linear streaks is followed by a yellowing and wilting of the diseased leaf. An
examination of the fibrovascular bundles of the pseudostems and corms of diseased plants shows
a discoloration of the vascular strands. If a series of cross sections is cut from the rhizome to
the upper part of a badly diseased plant this discoloration of the vascular strands can be traced
from the stele of the rhizome into the pseudostem, then into the petioles and midrib and finally
into the leaf veins (133).

Plants infected with the wilt disease die quickly. While bunchy top may require a year or
two to devastate a field, the wilt disease runs its course in four to six months in infected plants
and almost as quickly in a field. Of the three major diseases of abaca, vascular wilt is the most
difficult to control because the causal organism lives in the soil, and once the soil is infected it
may remain so indefinitely.

The only control measures that have so far proved effective for vascular wilt and bunchy
top are roguing and burning of infected plants if the disease has not progressed too far, or de-
stroying all plants not ready for harvesting if the disease is widespread in the plantation.

Mosaic. --In 1937 Edwards'47 stated: "What appears to be a typical mosaic disease has been
found in several different localities in Davao. The damage done has not been serious and there
is some question as to whether or not this is a true disease, as the affected plants are ordinarily
found growing under unfavorable conditions in poorly drained soils. " Today this mosaic disease
is the most serious menace to the future production of abaca in the Province of Davao (148).

The mosaic disease is more easily detected by the layman than some other abaca diseases,
and for this reason it may be easier to control. In the case of bunchy top in Cavite, the disease
had a long start before anything was done to eradicate it because it is not easily recognized in
its early stages, and it was difficult to convince the farmers that infected plants and fields had
to be destroyed.

The characteristic symptom of mosaic of abaca is a mottling of the leaves, which consists
of dark-green and pale-green or yellowish areas forming irregular streaks that extend from the
midrib to the margin of the leaves (fig. 13). Mottling occurs also on the petioles, pseudostems,
flower bracts, and fruit. The abaca mosaic does not cause a bunching of the leaves, but plants
affected with this disease do not grow to normal size and the pseudostems produced are slender
and of little or no commercial value (39).

Mosaic like bunchy top is a virus disease, and is said to be caused by Cucumis Virus I, or
Marmor cucumeris Holmes (39, 130). It is transmitted from diseased to healthy plants through
the feeding of aphids or plant lice. Four different aphids are known to be able to transmit abaca
mosaic (39, 40, 1 30). These are Aphis gossypii Glov. , the cotton or melon aphid; two species
of Rhopalosiphum collected from grasses, namely, R_. nymphaeae (L. ), the water lily aphid,
and_R. prunifoliae Fitch, the apple grain aphid; and Aphis maidis, the corn aphid. The last-
named may be an especially important vector of the mosaic virus, for experiments have shown
that it is able to transmit the mosaic not only from abaca to abaca, but also from abaca to corn
arid from corn to abaca (40). Moreover, it is widely distributed on numerous host plants, in-
cluding many grasses.

Pentalonia nigronervosa, the vector of bunchy top, cannot transmit the mosaic disease to
healthy abaca (39), but individual plants have been found in Davao that showed the characteristic
symptoms of both diseases (fig. 14). It would appear, therefore, that the presence of one of the
viruses is no guaranty of immunity from the other (131). As a result of a series of tests with
plants infected with both bunchy top and mosaic, Ocfemia and associates (131) concluded that in
such plants "either of the viruses may be transmitted independently of the other, depending upon
whether Pentalonia nigronervosa or Aphis gossypii is used. Neither of these two aphids will
transmit both viruses. "

The mosaic, like bunchy top, may be carried over to new plantations by the use of dis-
eased planting stock or planting stock taken from diseased stools, and this, unfortunately, is
frequently done. The methods suggested for the control of mosaic are the same as for bunchy
top and wilt; that is, destruction of infected plants or of the entire field if many plants are in-
fected. Such measures call for quick and determined action on the part of the Government. A

47 See Footnote No. 25.

ABACA--A CORDAGE FIBER

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U. S. DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE

Figure 14---Abaca seedling showing a mixed infection of mosaic and bunchy top. The
plant was first infected with the mosaic virus, then with the bunchy top virus. (Photo
courtesy of G. 0. Ocfemia.)

great deal of labor will be required touproot and replant large areas and the costs will be high.
Since the disease is spread by the use of diseased planting stock as well as by insect vectors.it
may be necessary for the Government to establish nurseries from which certified planting stock
can be obtained.

To some extent the planter can protect himself by making sure that no plants are grown in
the vicinity of abaca that can serve as hosts for the insect vectors, such, for instance, as cotton,
melon, tomato, canna, corn, and weeds. Somewhat tardily the Philippine Government began a
campaign in 1949 to control mosaic,*8 bunchy top, and vascular wilt.

48 ANONYMOUS. THE MOSAIC DISEASE OF ABACA AND ITS CONTROL. Philippine Islands. Bur. Plant Indus. Leaflet.
1949. [Processed.]

ABACA --A CORDAGE FIBER 39

Under Administrative Order 14, Series 1949, ' the Government prohibited the transfer of
planting stock from provinces declared infected to noninfected provinces, and from one area in
an infected province to another area. Under this order the owner of infected plantings is re-
quired to destroy all diseased plants, and failure to do so promptly after orders from the Govern-
ment makes him liable to heavy penalties. This is a step in the right direction, but with the high
prices of abaca and the tenuous hold on the land of some of its tenants, many of whom are
"squatters, " it would not be expected that the Government could easily obtain whole-hearted
cooperation from the abaca farmers.

Dry sheath rot of abaca. --A disease which has gained a foothold in neglected abaca fields
in the Philippines was reported as present in Cavite in 1936; it has since been found in Davao,
Mindoro, and the Bicol Peninsula ( 147). This disease, known as dry sheath rot of abaca or
Marasmius stem and root rot, is caused by a gill-bearing fungus that lives in the soil. The fungus
is probably Marasmius semiustus Berk, and Curt. ( 188) , the organism that causes stem and root
rot of bananas and plantains in many parts of the Tropics. In the Philippines it flourishes in low,
poorly drained soil during prolonged periods of warm, moist weather. Such soils are unfavorable
for the growth of vigorous abaca plants.

The fungus first attacks the corms ( 147) but rapidly spreads to the pseudostems. The
diseased sections of the leaf sheaths turn brown and take on a water-soaked appearance. The
mycelium of the fungus penetrates the outer leaf sheaths, and as it spreads it causes the sheaths
to stick together. On and between the dead leaf sheaths are layers of white mycelium ( 188) . The
inner leaf sheaths show dark-brown patches of diseased tissue. When temperature and moisture
conditions are favorable, mushroom-like fruiting bodies appear on the affected stems (fig. 15).
The fungus also attacks the roots, partially destroying the root system. Such plants are easily
tipped over. Affected plants fail to make normal growth and usually die early. Those that do
reach maturity are not worth stripping.

Since the fungus exists as a saprophyte in the soil, clean culture is recommended; diseased
plants should be destroyed, and all planting stock should be obtained from disease-free fields.

Stem rot of abaca. --Another fungus disease of abaca that apparently is serious only when
soil and climatic conditions favor the fungus and retard the growth of the plant, is the stem rot
caused by Helminthosporium torulosum (Syd. ) Ashby. Prolonged droughts, which weaken the
plants, increase the virulence of the disease ( 1 36). At such times the disease may spread rapidly
and become very destructive. In areas like the Bicol Peninsula and Mindanao, where climatic
conditions are conducive to the best growth of abaca, the stem rot does not become severe (136),
but in the highlands of Cavite, where long droughts are of almost yearly occurrence, losses are
often heavy (_1) . Infection begins in December and spreads rapidly. A few months later when the
rains begin, the disease decreases and plants only slightly infected put out new suckers, and the
plantation remains healthy and green until the dry season returns and infection builds up again.

The fungus that causes stem rot of abaca (Helminthosporium torulosum) is the same as
that which causes the black tip disease of Cavendish or Dwarf banana in Bermuda and leaf and
fruit spots on banana in various parts of the world (188). Infection is first apparent as tiny brown
lesions on the outer- leaf sheaths. These grow larger, coalesce, and form large spots. Eventually
these dark- brown or black sunken areas are overlain with a grayish growth of mycelium ( 148) .
The disease progresses inward, attacking each leaf sheath in turn. In the final stages of the
disease the weakened plants fall over and the affected sheaths dry up„ Of 12 varieties tested, the
Sinibuyas and Kinalabao were found to be the least susceptible (32) . To control the disease con-
stant roguing of diseased plants should be practiced, shade should be provided where necessary
to keep the soil from baking, and only the least susceptible varieties should be planted ( 1) .

Heart rot. --The characteristic symptom of this disease is a rotting of the young unfurled
leaves in the center of the plant. The rotting usually begins at the tip of the youngest furled leaf
and progresses downward, ft may continue until the whole central cylinder is decayed, in which
case the plant dies.

Ramos ( 146) regards heart rot as a secondary infection that occurs in plants already weak-
ened by disease or by insect or other injury. In field observations he found that about 10 to 22
percent of the plants suffering from the bunchy top disease eventually died of heart rot and from
53 to 90 percent of those injured by the banana borer (Cosmopolites sordidus Ger. ) were infected
with heart rot. Bacteria are sometimes abundant in the soft decaying tissues of heart-rotted
plants. A fungus .commonly found associated with the disease was identified by Ocfemia and
Mendiola (132) as Fusarium moniliforme Sheldon var. subglutinans Wr. and Reink.

49 PHILIPPINES (REPUBLIC) BUREAU OF PLANT INDUSTRY. AN ORDER CONTAINING REGULATIONS GOVERNING
INTER-PROVINCIAL QUARANTINE ON ALL PLANTS OF THE SPECIES OF THE GENUS MUSA . . . Plant Indus. Admin. Order 14,
ser. 1949, 3 pp. Manila. 1949. [Mimeographed.]

U. S. DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE

Figure 15.--Morosmius somiustMS. the organis ro that causes dry
sheath rot of abaca. (From Wordlaw: "Diseases of the Banana
and of the Manila Hemp Plant." Courtesy Macmillan & Co., Ltd.)

Insect pests of abaca. --Certain insects at times have proved damaging to abaca plants.
The common banana borer (Cosmopolites sordidus) is widely distributed throughout the abaca
provinces and does considerable damage. At high altitudes in Davao the stem weevil (Odoiporus
longicollis) is also a destructive pest. Much damage has sometimes been done by "pagui pagui, "
a slug caterpillar (Thosea sinensis Wlk.). In 1931 an area in Davao that included more than
2 1/2 million hills was infested. 50 The larva of this insect feeds on the leaves of the plant, and
so voracious is its appetite that three larvae, from hatching to adult, are said to be able to finish
a leaf a meter long. 51 There are three to four generations of Thosea a year, but under field con-
ditions only 50 percent of the pupae develop into adults.52 The larva of this insect is relished by
crows, domestic fowls, and monkeys, and it is parasitized by several insects. Since Thosea
damages abaca only in the larval stage, it can be controlled by picking off the caterpillars, by
spraying with insecticides, and by liberating parasites in the field.

50 ROXAS, M. L. Memorandum. Mar. 21, 1932. [Unpublished.]

See Footnote No. 43.

52 See Footnote No. 43.

ABACA- -A CORDAGE FIBER 41

CENTRAL AMERICA

Abaca plantings in Central America have never reached the high production figures so con-
fidently predicted by some at the time of planting, 1942-43. The urgent war-time need for fiber
caused the young plants to be overharvested, and before this situation could be remedied, disease
and insect infestation multiplied to such an extent as to become a serious factor in cutting pro-
duction. In 1948 production of long fiber was approximately 40, 280, 000 pounds; in 1949 it was
approximately 29, 710, 000 pounds, a decrease of 10, 570, 000 pounds. The highest annual per acre
yield for all of Central America, based on 26, 600 acres, was 1, 510 pounds obtained in 1948; in
1949 it was 1, 110 pounds. This obviously serious situation was the subject of much discussion.
It was a factor that led to the establishment in 1950 of an abaca research project with the assign-
ment of specialists of the United States Department of Agriculture to study these problems in
Central America with headquarters and in cooperation with the Inter -American Institute of
Agricultural Sciences, Turrialba, Costa Rica.

The expected high production was probably based on optimum cultural and climatic con-
ditions and a minimum of disease hazards. The best cultural practices were difficult to insure
in the war-time haste with which this crop was planted. In 1951 from knowledge gained from
experience and study, together with the benefit of time which permitted more attention to the
problem, approximately 10 to 15 percent of the original acreage had been abandoned because of
uneconomical problems connected with correcting high water table, flood perils, taltuza infes-
tation, etc. With these measures, the improvement in the farm management practices, a possible
cyclic decrease in the damage of the borer, a better understanding of the value of sanitary
harvesting for reducing the severity of dry sheath rot, etc. , the possibilities appeared materially
better for maintaining or improving past production.

"Tip Over". --In 1949 the heaviest losses in all of the Central American plantings came
from "tip over. " The losses were not as great in 1950 and 1951. The term "tip over" is applied
to plants that fall over in the field before any external symptoms of disease are visible. Tip over
plants are sometimes toppled by a slight breeze blowing through the field (fig. 16). Instances
are recounted where the plants have been blown down by the breeze from a passing tramcar. Few,
if any, tip over plants have healthy root systems. In many such plants the original root system
disappears and their only means of support comes from new roots developed above the diseased
areas near the ground level. Every 2 months or oftener, crews go through the field to salvage
by gathering up the fallen plants. These are decorticated if they are sufficiently sound but some
fiber is lost and the problems of farm management are increased. In Costa Rica the senior
author was told that possibly 40 percent of the stalks then [May 1949] being delivered to the mill
for processing were from tip over plants. An estimate from another official for the Central
American projects was 60 percent; for poor areas in Panama the estimate was 25 percent. While
these figures are no more than estimates, they do indicate how serious the tip over situation may
be.

The plantations in Costa Rica were said to have made phenomenal growth during the first
3 years after planting. During the early harvesting periods it was not uncommon to cut stalks 18
feet long; now the best are 11 to 12 feet and usually from 5 to 6. Wellman quotes a man connected
with the abaca project to illustrate the tip over problem, as saying, "We have a potential of 500-
tons cut daily from this plantation, and right now [ 1949 ] we are only harvesting 185. "

Various theories to account for the tip over trouble have been advanced, but the separation
of the responsible factors as pathological, entomological, the result of soil depletion, or of poor
cultural practices has never been clearly made. The banana borer (Cosmopolites sordidus) is
believed by some to be the agent principally responsible, yet many blown-over plants show no sign
of weevil infestation or tip over related to nearby insect-infected plants going down. Wellman -3
noted that the attack of insects on the corm and roots was not the only injury to the underground
parts of tip over plants. The roots themselves appeared to be decayed at the tips, and the decay
became progressively worse toward the corms. The decay often resulted in a sort of clublike
enlargement of the roots where the disease had apparently been checked. But in instances where
checking had occurred the roots were killed to within 20 cm. or less of the corm. In some cases
roots were apparently killed back so rapidly that no clubs formed and the whole root structure
showed decay.

Microscopic examination of tissue from diseased roots revealed the presence of what
seemed to be secondary fungi, as well as considerable bacterial decay that also looked as though
it were secondary. Fungal threads were found growing in the water -conducting vessels of dis-
colored root tissue. Within 24 hours after isolations were made what seemed to be a species of
Rhizopus appeared, and a few days later a single type of Fusarium was observed. The Fusarium

53 WELLMAN, F. L. NOTES ON "TIP OVER" OF ABACA IN COSTA RICA. 7 pp. Apr. 21, 1949. [Unpublished report.]

U. S. DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE

Figure 16.— "Tip over" in an abaca plantation in Central America. The plants suffering from a deteriorated root system
have little support and fall down before normal harvest age.

seemed to be a fairly constant organism in the discolored but less decayed tissues of the roots.
The significance of these findings may be questioned, however, for fungi and bacteria are likely
to be found in decaying root tissue, whatever the cause of decay.

The banana borer has long been recognized as a pest in most of the banana- growing areas
of the world, and it is known to be present in all of the five Central American abaca projects.
Because of the importance of the borer as a pest of bananas, its life history and habits have been
carefully studied and are well understood (41. 61, 75, 122).

Until 1947 abaca plantings in Central America seemed to be fairly free of insect injury, but
when a survey of the situation was made by Hambleton 5* in 1948, he reported that field examina-
tions of abaca plantings in the Changuinola area of Panama and near La Lima, Honduras, dispel
any doubts as to the importance of the banana borer as a pest of abaca. He believes that the tip
over of stalks in older plantings gives every indication of being directly attributable to borer
injury, and he stated that judging from the actual situation in the field, the nature of the crop,
and the favorable conditions for borer propagation, there is reason to believe that unless effective
measures are found to control it, the borer can become a menace to the entire abaca industry in
Central America.

The borer is a snout weevil (fig. 17), about half an inch in length, brown to black in color,
and nocturnal in habit. Its attack often begins in the decaying butts of stalks left in the ground
after the stalks are harvested. The eggs may be laid in the corms of unharvested stalks near the
surface of the ground, in the sheaths near the crown of the corm, or on old leaf bases left to rot
in the field. Within 5 to 7 days (61 , 75) the larva hatches (fig. 18). It then bores into the corm,
feeding voraciously as it goes. The whole of the larval period, which lasts from 15 to 21 days
(61, 75), is spent within the tissues of the plant, and it is in this stage that the insect is most

54 HAMBLETON, E. J. THE BANANA ROOT BORER PROBLEM OF ABACA IN CENTRAL AMERICA. 5 pp. 1948.
[Processed.]

ABACA- -A CORDAGE FIBER

Figure 17-Banana borer (Cosmopolites sordidus Ger.), adult stage. A, Dorsal view; B, ventral view. X 7-1/2. (Courtesy

of C. F. W. Muesebeck.)

261543 O - 54 - 4

U. S. DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE

Figure 18. --Larval stage of banana borer. X 7-1/2. (Courtesy of C. F. W. Muesebeck.)

destructive. The corms of the plants attacked by the borer frequently show tunnels made by the
larvae near the ground level, and the fibrous roots are often severed by the continued feeding of
the grubs. When this occurs the outer part of the corm becomes necrotic and ceases to function,
and since abaca has no central tap-root (see fig. 8), the plant may then tip over.

Adult beetles are often found feeding in groups in corms, in rotting stems near the surface
of the ground, and in the soil around the roots. The borer is hardy and long-lived, but it is a
sluggish insect and not especially prolific. Infestations build up rather gradually. The borer
seems to have no other host plants than banana (75) and abaca. The inertia of the insect, its
sedentary habit, and its preference for the single host Musa would make the problem of control
fairly easy except for the fact that all stages of the life cycle of the insect except the adult are
passed in the tissues of the plant.

In Jamaica, where the borer has long been a pest of banana, control measures have centered
largely on field sanitation. These have included the destruction of all plant refuse that might
serve as a breeding ground for the borer, removal of stumps left after plants are cut, and a
rapid clean-up of fallen stalks after hurricanes or high winds.

In Central America some preliminary insecticidal tests have been made in which DDT and
chlordane preparations were sprayed about the bases of the plants, but these measures did not
prove effective. As in Jamaica, various methods of clean culture are being tried. Where the
growth of the plants is so rank as to form a dense shade around the base of the plants, cleaning
of the mats and a light prune harvest are being practiced. Recently in the Panama project the
destruction of all stumps or rhizomes left after harvest has been included as part of the harvesting
program, and the results have been encouraging.55 In this connection it may be mentioned that
borer injury has not been as severe a problem in the 6-year-old Honduran research plots in which
clean cultivation has always been practiced. 56

Another weevil often found associated with the banana borer, and frequently mistaken for
it, is Metamasius sericeus (Oliv.). Metamasius is a pest of sugar cane, but when the banana
borer has tunneled into the corm of abaca, the larvae of Metamasius mu.y often be found feeding
on the disintegrating tissue. In size and shape the larvae of the two species are much alike, but
the yellow markings on the wing covers of the adult Metamasius serve to distinguish it from the
banana borer, whose wing covers are uniformly black.

While surveying the Panama plantation, Wellman57 noted a stunted condition of certain
plants, to which the growers applied the term "stand stop. " The disease was characterized by

55 UNITED FRUIT COMPANY. GUATEMALA DIVISION. COSTA RICA ABACA CONFERENCE, SEPTEMBER 1949. [Unpub-
lished manuscript.]

56 UNITED FRUIT COMPANY. TELA RAILROAD COMPANY RESEARCH DEPARTMENT ANNUAL REPORT 1948. La Lima,
Honduras. [Unpublished.]

57 WELLMAN, F. L. NOTES ON TIP OVER OF ABACA IN PANAMA. 6 pp. Turrialba, Costa Rica. May 11, 1949. [Unpub-
lished.]

ABACA--A CORDAGE FIBER 45

death of the upper part of the outer leaf sheaths and compression of the crown; or, as the growers
said, the plants are not "well crowned out. " Many of the leaves on such plants were dead and
those that were still green were smaller than the leaves of normal plants and the color was poorer.
These "stand stop" plants occurred in mats closely surrounded by other abaca. The pseudostems
of the diseased plants were abnormally slender and the roots were so completely decayed that the
plants could easily be lifted from the mats; only the corms remained to support the plants. An
examination of the corms showed no insects present. Wellman offered the suggestion that possibly
the "stand stop" condition is "an advanced stage of certain still standing tip-over plants. "

In view of the importance of the tip over disease and the divergence of opinion as to its cause,
it would seem that a thorough study should be made of the whole situation. The following lines of
investigation might yield profitable results.

1. A survey to determine the extent of the borer infestation in each of the Central American
plantations in order that efforts for its control may be concentrated where the need is greatest and
the increase or decrease in infestation in future years may be correctly judged.

2. Research into methods of biological control. The borer is known to have natural enemies
in other parts of the world. In Java it is preyed upon by the larvae of a histerid beetle (Plaesius
javanus Er.) and in the Federated Malay States by a hydrophilid (Dactylosternum hydrophiloides
McLeay) ( 189) . There is also a fly (Chrysopilus ferruginosus ( Wied. )) , whose maggots feed upon
the larvae of the borer ( 189) ■ P. javanus has been successfully established in Jamaica and it has
been introduced into Central America, but whether or to what extent it survives there is not known
since no counts have been made.

3. Tests to determine the effectiveness of some of the newer insecticides in reducing the
borer population. These might include parathion, benzene hexachloride, toxaphene (chlorinated
camphene), and insecticides that are not yet in commercial production but that showed considerable
promise in tests conducted against a variety of fruit insects by the United States Department of
Agriculture in 1949. Among these are an experimental insecticide bearing the code designation
EPN;53 two insecticides designated by Code Nos. CS 645A and CS 674A; 59 and two compounds
called aldrin and dieldrin, products related to chlordane. These sprays would be used primarily
against the adult beetles after emergence.

Soil fumigants that have been used successfully against the soil-infesting stage of some
insects are dichloroethyl ether alone or with DDT incorporated in it, and ethylene dibromide
emulsion, but with ethylene dibromide there is a narrow margin of safety between the amount
needed to control the insect and the amount that will injure the plant.

Several of the insecticides mentioned above as sprays can also be used as soil fumigants.

4. A study of the relation of fungi and bacteria to the root rot disease.

5. Importation of different varieties of abaca from the Orient for testing under Central
American conditions, and an expansion of the breeding program now under way. Of the more than
100 varieties of abaca known in the Philippines, only 6 are grown commercially in Central America.

6. A study of the influence on incidence of the disease exerted by certain environmental
factors, such as temperature and humidity, aeration, density of shade, number of stalks per mat,
soil moisture and fertility.

Leaf spot. --While the heaviest losses in the Costa Rican plantings are undoubtedly due to
tip over, Wellman believes that the leaf spot is a contributing cause. The plantations in Costa
Rica consist of practically solid stands of the Bungulanon variety. Large spots appear on the
leaves, usually along the margins, and these are so uniformly present that the ragged, diseased
appearance of the leaves is considered a normal condition. Wellman counted from 20 to 37

large spots on most of the leaves examined in the field, and in many cases the disease covered
more than one -third of the leaf blade.

Leaf spots examined in the laboratory were found to contain spores of Cordana musae and
Helminthosporium torulosum, but no infection studies were made.

Wellman visited a planting of 6 varieties in Costa Rica. The plots were small, each con-
sisting of about 5 by 5 mats, and all were surrounded by Bungulanon plants affected by the leaf
spot disease. Counts taken gave the following results:

58 E. I. Dupont de Nemours & Company, Wilmington 68, Delaware.

59 Commercial Solvents Corporation, 260 Madison Avenue, New York 16, N. Y.

60 Julius Hyman Co'mpany, Denver, Colorado.
6* See Footnote No. 53.

62 See Footnote No. 53.

U. S. DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE

Variety

Sinaba

Puteean

Libuton

Tangon'on

Maguindanao

Bungulanon

Number of plants

Number of spots

per mat

to 240

Amount of dead
hanging leaves

Medium amount

Small amount

Fair amount

Medium amount

None

Large amount

These data, while limited in scope, emphasize the susceptibility to leaf spot of the pre-
dominant variety in Costa Rica, and they show- -for these plots, at least- -that the leaf spot can-
not be attributed to crowding of the plants.

In Honduras the leaf spot is said to be present to some extent on all varieties, but, as in
Costa Rica, it is particularly destructive on the Bungulanon. 63 Though susceptibility varies in
different locations, the Sinaba and Puteean varieties are generally susceptible and the Libuton,
Tangofipon, and Maguindanao more resistant.64

The extent of disease in the Honduras experimental plots other than tip over and leaf spot
for the years 1945-48 is shown in table 4.

Panama disease. --The Panama disease caused by Fusarium oxysporum cubense, which
wiped out the banana industry in many areas of Central America, has never proved to be a
serious pest of abaca in the Western Hemisphere. However, it does occur sporadically (table 4).
The symptoms produced by the fungus on banana and abaca are the same, but it attacks the abaca
plants at a much earlier age, and it was reported as attacking only young plants.65 These plants
may succumb to the disease, but the mat as a whole will outgrow it. This disease in 1949 was
reported to have shown no tendency to become more serious as the plantations grow older.66
However by 1951-52 the characteristic symptoms were so prevalent in the old plants at Guaymas,
Honduras, that it is questionable that the disease is limited to the young plants or a more virulent
strain for abaca may have arisen.

Bud and heart rot. --This rot is rather frequent in occurrence (table 4), and, like the
Panama disease, it usually attacks young plants. Since there is almost always a superabundance
of suckers in the mat, however, the disease is not considered important. 6r'

Sheath and stalk rot. --The sheath and stalk rot diseases are found in all abaca-producing
countries, and while they have usually been considered of minor importance, in Central American
plantations they have sometimes caused serious damage to the Bungulanon and Maguindanao
varieties (table 4).

The dry sheath rot caused by Marasmius semiustus probably is much more destructive
than has been recognized. It creates the need for removing by peeling and then discarding many
of the outer leaf sheaths of the abaca stalks before they are passed through the fiber extracting
machinery. Greater emphasis placed on more sanitary (removal of diseased stalks) harvesting
practices should be followed to reduce the severity of the infection and losses from this disease.

Stalk rot attacks the outer sheaths and eats its way into the stalk, usually in several places,
discoloring the fiber brown. If the disease progresses far enough, it may cause a collar rot,
particularly on Maguindanao, that kills the plant. Stalk rot is usually less prevalent in stands
where conditions favor the development of strong plants.

In 1949 rainfall was so scant in the Guaymas district of Honduras that even the abaca grown
under irrigation suffered, and many almost mature plants "doubled" before maturity. Under these
conditions stalk rot became severe. Laboratory and field studies showed that this trouble was
associated with decay of the roots and discoloration of the rhizomes. The pathogen was found to
be Micrococcus varians, a bacterium. The same organism was found in rhizomes from Costa
Rica and Panama which showed the same symptoms. The United Fruit Company Report 69 states
that the spread of the disease is believed to be closely associated with the banana borer or with
poor growing conditions, and its control will depend upon the control of the insect or improved
cultural practices.

63 UNITED FRUIT COMPANY. TELA RAILROAD COMPANY RESEARCH DEPARTMENT ANNUAL REPORT 1946. La Lima,
Honduras. [Processed. ]

64 See Footnote No. 63.

65 See Footnote No. 36.

66 See Footnote No. 44.

67 See Footnote No. 56.

68 See Footnote No. 56.

69 See Footnote No. 44.

ABACA- -A CORDAGE FIBER

TABLE 4-. — Percentage of plants affected with stalk rot, bud and heart rot, and "Panama" disease
in abaca experimental plantings, Honduras, 1945-4868

Number of

plants-*

Percentage of plants affected with-

Variety

Stalk rot

Bud and heart rot

Panama disease

1945 194-6

1947

1948

1945 1946 1947 194-8

1945 194-6 1947 1948

1945 1946 1947 1948

Libuton

86 213

83 213
119 641

93 221
104- 900

80 305

65
49
69
60
297
52

80
60
85
74
305
66

— 3.2

8.0 — 6.8

4.0 — 4.8 9.4
12.0 -- 4-. 2 9.5
25.0 0.6 20.0 1.6

1.0 — 7.5 10.6

— 4.6 10.4 3.8

4.8 15.2 4.9 21.7

.8 21.7 15.8 28.2

-- 14.1 9.0 23.0

1.0 5.8 10.0 14.1

8.7 9.6 6.0 19.7

'__ 8.3 13.3

Puteean

__ __ __ 1.2

— — .6 —

1.9 5.5 3.3 3.3

__ __ __ 4.5

68 See Footnote No. 56.
* Data on all plants in 1945 and 1946, but only on harvested plants in 1947-4-8.

Taltusa. --In addition to insects and fungi, the industry has to contend with an animal pest,
known locally as "Taltusa. " "Taltusa" is a colloquial term that covers two or more genera of
pocket gophers that are about twice the size of those found in the United States. According to the
United States Fish and Wildlife Service, species of the following genera occur in Central

America: Macrogeomys, in Costa Rica; Heterogeomys, from central Guatemala to Puebla,
Mexico; and Orthogeomys, from the west coast of Guatemala into the west coast of Mexico. To
date few studies have been made of this pest, and there are no satisfactory measures for its
control. The Fish and Wildlife Service suggests that the methods used for the control of the
gopher Thomomys that occurs in the United States might be tried, but there is no assurance that
they will succeed. The gophers feed on the roots of bananas as well as abaca, thus weakening
the plants, which may "tip over. "

The final tip over of the plant from taltusa damage or other biological causes is the symptom
that is so visually evident. Taltusas, borers, root rots, etc. , probably account for rather serious
losses in production by dwarfing the growth of plants even though their attack is not serious enough
to reach the final tip over stage. Taltusa damage has been more widespread in abaca in Costa
Rica than on other Central American abaca plantations. The severity of its damage has been con-
trolled undoubtedly to some extent by floods that have inundated the land and drowned the animals
in 'their underground tunnels. In Costa Rica a small acreage has been abandoned from one planta-
tion due to taltusa infection. Besides this abandonment a larger acreage of the plantation has
suffered materially.

VARIETIES

There are many different varieties of abaca in the Philippine Islands, but as yet no com-
prehensive investigation of this subject has been made and the actual number is not known. Appar-
ently there are also a number of different types of each variety, for at least 12 types of the
variety Tangongon have been reported in Davao Province alone. Another source of difficulty in
connection with the study of abaca varieties is the fact that any one variety may exhibit different
characteristics when grown in different localities and under different conditions of soil and
climate.

With respect to the nomenclature of the abaca varieties, the'greatest confusion exists. In
different districts of any one province, the same variety may be known by different names, or the
same name may be applied to several varieties. In the widely separated abaca districts of different
provinces and islands, this confusion in nomenclature is even more in evidence. The accompanying
list, compiled from various published reports, includes the names of more than 130 varieties.
Which of these names represent valid varieties and which are different designations for the same
variety, it. would be impossible to say. It is known, however, that only 8 varieties were extensively
grown in Davao in prewar years, and in the southwestern part of that province commercial pro-
duction was carried on practically with 2 varieties, Maguidanao and Bungulanon (j£) . In Cavite
only the varieties Sinibuyas and Kinalabao were generally grown (151).

Information by telephone.

U. S. DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE

Varieties of Abaca Grown in the Philippine Islands

Abacang bayan

Abaco Turncan (or Mosqueado)

Agenoy

Agogaron (or Agoraron)

Agutay

Alman

Alman nga itom

Amokid

Apid

Arupan

Babalonon

Bagacayon (Bagacayan)

Baguisanon

Baguisanon-Basag (Basog)

Baguisanon-Lawaan

Balunan

Balunganon

Balunis

Balunum

Bangulanon

Banguisan

Bato

Binobui

Bisaya

Bolonganon

Bulao

Bungulanon (Bungalanon; Bongulanon)

Buntot Kabayo

Calapan

Canorahan (Canaraon)

Canorajah

Carnajon

Gamatagos

Hagenoy

Hagpas

"Hagpas" Pula

"Hagpas"-Puti

Halayhay

Halugan

Ihalas

Ilayas

Imosa (inosa)

Inisarog

Inte

Inusa

Itehin Balud (Balod; Itehin-balud)

Itom

Itom Sport

Jolo

Jolo-lambutin

Jolo-tigasin

Kalaao

Kalado

Kawayanon

Kilala

Kinalabao (Kinalabaw)

Kinosol

Lagnis

Lagorjoan

Laguis (Laguise)

Laguna

Lagurhuan

Lagurhuan-Burawen (Buranen)

Lagurhuan Dogami (Dagami)

Lakig

Lausigon (Lansigon)

Lawa-an (Lauaan)

Layahon (Layajon)

Lawisid (Lewisid)

Liahan (Liahon)

Lianwaan (Linawaan)

Libotong

Libutanay (Lebutanay)

Libuton

Lono

Luno

Maguindanao

Makiling

Marinduque

Minalabao

Mininonga

Moro

Moro bianco

Moro Colorado

Moro negro

Mosqueado

Pagoonayan (Pacoonayan)

Palayog

Panaon

Pinamalayan

Pinoonan

Polahan

Pongay

Ponokan

Poti-an

Pula

Pulahan (Pulajan)

Punucan (Punacan; Punukan)

Puspos

Puti

Putian (Puteean)

Putianin

Puti-tumatagacan (tomatogacan;

tomatagakan)
Quidit
Saba
Sabaon
Salumpikit
Samarong itom
Samarong puti
Samina
Samoro-Puti
Samorong Mapula
Sawayo
Smaba
Sinaguilala

Sinamora pula (Sinomoro Pula)
Sinamoro (Sinamore)
Sinamoro-puti (Sinomore Puti)
Sinantacruz (Santa Cruz)
Sinapi
Sinibuyas (Sinibo/as)

ABACA- -A CORDAGE FIBER 49

Sugmod Tinbalus

Sumok Tuigon

Tagacan bianco Tumatagacan bianco

Tagacan Colorado Tumatagacan Colorado

Tangkongon Verdosa

Tangongon Visaya

Among the more important characteristics which serve to distinguish one variety of abaca
from another are: Size, shape, and color of the stalk; size, shape, and texture of the leaves, and
the manner in which the leaves hang on the stalk; color and shape of the flower bud; stooling habit
of the plant; rapidity of development and length of life of the plant; degree of drought and wind
resistance, and degree of adaptability to various soil conditions; resistance to disease; quantity
and quality of the fiber, and relative ease or difficulty with which it is stripped.

There is no one variety of abaca that possesses all the good qualities of the other varieties.
In order to select for planting from available plant material a variety that is exceptionally hardy,
one that will produce a heavy yield of fiber, or one that will produce exceptionally fine fiber, some
sacrifice of qualities in other characters is necessary.

A description of the varieties of abaca cultivated in any one province of the Philippine Islands
is not an entirely accurate description of the varieties of any other province. There are, however,
a limited number of fairly distinct types. These include the large, hardy varieties, of which
Tangongon is a representative; those that are somewhat smaller in size and more exacting with
respect to climatic and soil requirements, such as Bungulanon; and the large group of undesirable
varieties, represented by the Baguisanon.

The province of Davao, in southern Mindanao, is the one abaca-producing province in the
Philippine Islands where there has been a fairly thorough investigation of the varieties of abaca.
The former plantation owners in Davao were familiar with the good and bad qualities of the different
varieties found in that province, and used great care in selecting propagating stock of the superior
varieties. Even in Davao, however, there was some confusion regarding the nomenclature of
abaca varieties, and there was a marked difference of opinion among the planters in respect to
the relative value of the different varieties.

The following 14 varieties of Davao abaca have been described by Edwards and Saleeby (60):
(1) Tangongon, (2) Maguindanao, (3) Bungulanon, (4) Libuton, (5) Panucan, (6) Arupan, (7) Puteean,
(8) Sinaba, (9) Agutay, (10) Baguisanon Lawaan, (11) Baguisanon, (12) Pulajan, (13) Puspos, and
(14) Kawayanon. Of these the first 8 only are said to be desirable. Actually only 3 varieties -
Tangongon, Bungulanon, and Maguindanao - were being planted in Davao in 1950 on a large
scale. The Libuton and the Lauan-Tangongon are also planted to some extent.

Tangongon. --This variety is an excellent representative of the large, hardy, vigorous
varieties of abaca found in nearly all the Philippine provinces. It is the most popular variety in
use in the replanting program. 71 Tangongon stalks measuring from 15 to 18 feet in height, and
weighing from 175 to 200 pounds are not unusual. This is a beautiful plant, as the large stalks,
which are ordinarily dark in color, ranging from a deep purple to black, have a characteristic
glossy aspect. The Tangongon has a relatively large leaf, and the leaves have a tendency to grow
straight upward, in contrast to the drooping leaves of certain other varieties.

With respect to soil requirements, Tangongon is the least exacting of the valuable Davao
varieties. It has given satisfactory results on a wide range of well-drained soils of average
fertility, but makes the best growth on a clay soil. Of the 3 varieties which are most commonly
grown in Davao, the Tangongon is the most resistant to drought and disease. On the other hand,
it has some undesirable qualities. It does not stool as well as the other varieties; the number of
suckers is relatively few and the hills have a tendency to "run out. " Its development after
planting is slower than that of Maguindanao, but more rapid than Bungulanon. In the Philippines
the rootstocks of Tangongon often push above the surface of the soil, the hold of the plant on the
soil is weakened, and the large heavy stalks are frequently blown down even during wind storms
of moderate severity.

The yield of fiber is heavy, ranging from 2. 5 to 2. 75 pounds of dry fiber" to each 100 pounds
of stalk (60). Tangongon is one of the most difficult varieties to strip, however, and is avoided by
many of the strippers. Tangongon fiber is c'oarse and strong and not as white as the fiber of other
varieties. Its coarseness and lack of luster are due in part to imperfect stripping.

Bungulanon. --Bungulanon and Maguindanao are the 2 varieties in large-scale commercial
production in Central America. Bungulanon has a number of good qualities. In the Lais-Malita,
P. I. , district, in which the greater part of the abaca plants brought to Panama were obtained,
Bungulanon is the most popular variety of abaca. The stalk is medium size, considerably smaller
than that of Tangongon. In color it is a dark greenish black, without the glossy appearance of

71 See Footnote No. 43.

50 U. S. DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE

the Tangongon stalk. The typical Bungulanon leaf is somewhat narrower than the leaves of the .
other varieties, but the most marked characteristic of the Bungulanon is its free stooling habit.
It produces a larger number of suckers than any of the leading varieties, ordinarily about 30
stalks to the hill and occasionally from 50 to 60. It comes into bearing somewhat earlier than
the Maguindanao, but does not continue to produce suckers for as long a period. After the fifth
or sixth year the yield begins to decline because of the heavy stooling. It strips about as easily
as Maguindanao, and because of the smaller stalks it is more easily handled. The yield of fiber
is heavier than that of Maguindanao, but the fiber is not as white. In Central America it has been
more susceptible than other varieties to leaf spot disease.

Bungulanon is an excellent variety for cultivation in localities where the soil conditions are
favorable, but without favorable soil conditions it is a pronounced failure. It requires a moist,
friable, well-drained alluvial loam, and cannot be grown either on a stiff clay or on a dry sandy
soil. It is not a drought-resistant variety, but it has a better hold on the soil than either Tangongon
or Maguindanao. Bungulanon has the reputation of being rather "dirty" in the field because of
the large number of dead leaves that are ordinarily found on its numerous stalks.

The fiber yield of Bungulanon is good, approaching that of Tangongon, but it is more easily
stripped than Tangongon. The fiber is not as long as that of some of the other varieties, and it
lacks the luster of Maguindanao. It is, however, a strong white fiber of excellent quality.

Maguindanao. --Maguindanao has long been regarded as one of the best of the Davao varieties
of abaca. It is one of the large varieties, closely approaching in size the Tangongon. There are
two fairly distinct types of Maguindanao with respect to the color of the stalk. One of these has
the dark purplish-black coloring of the Tangongon, and the other a stalk that is dark green in color.

The development of Maguindanao is rather more rapid than that of some of the other varieties,
and under favorable conditions the first stalks can be cut in 15 to 18 months after planting. In
stooling it is midway between Bungulanon and Tangongon, producing from 1 5 to 20 stalks to the
hill. A characteristic quality of the Maguindanao is the peculiar umbrella-like arching of the
leaves. In a typical plant this is very noticeable. Maguindanao is a relatively hardy variety,
though not as hardy as Tangongon. It has a somewhat wider range of soil adaptability than
Bungulanon, but it does not do well in heavy clay soils. Though it is somewhat more resistant to
drought than Bungulanon, it is by no means a drought-resistant variety. With its heavy expanse
of leaves and rather shallow root system, the plant is easily blown over by strong winds.

Maguindanao fiber, which is of superior quality, is strong, white, soft, and has a pronounced
luster. It is easily stripped by hand, and for this reason is a favorite with abaca strippers. The
yield of fiber--about 1. 75 pounds to every 100 pounds of stalk (60) - -is somewhat less than that of
Tangongon and Bungulanon.

Libuton. --This variety is not generally popular with the abaca planters, and has not been
planted in any large areas. The reason for this is probably its rather low yield of fiber. Libuton
is one of the hardy varieties of abaca. It produces a large stalk, though ordinarily not as large
as Tangongon. Dark shades of green and brown predominate in the coloring of the Libuton stalk.
A peculiarity of Libuton is the color of its flower cone, which is lighter and greener than the
flower cones of the other varieties. Another of its peculiarities is the tendency of the stalks to
bulge at the base. The margins of the leaves of the Libuton, after the leaves have dried on the
plant, have a saw-toothed appearance. In normal Libuton plants this is a typical feature.

With the exception of Bungulanon, Libuton produces more suckers than any of the other good
varieties, usually from 20 to 25 stalks to the hill. Although somewhat less hardy than Tangongon
in the matter of its soil requirements, Libuton surpasses the other varieties both as a drought-
resistant plant and in its hold on the soil. Libuton plants are rarely blown over by the wind. The
development of the Libuton plant is similar to that of the Tangongon, being somewhat slower than
Maguindanao and more rapid than Bungulanon. Its fiber is nearly as white, but it does not have
the luster of Maguindanao fiber. The yield of fiber is rather less than that of Bungulanon and
Maguindanao and much less than that of Tangongon. Libuton is more easily stripped than
Tangongon, and is not materially different in this respect from Bungulanon and Maguindanao.

Sinaba. --This variety, although not generally regarded as one of the superior varieties of
abaca, is cultivated to some extent in the Islands. It has characteristics both of the Maguindanao
and the Libuton and may be a hybrid of these varieties. The stalk is of medium size and has a
pronounced greenish color. Sinaba produces a large number of suckers, though ordinarily not as
many as Bungulanon.

Sinaba is easily stripped, and for this reason is popular with the strippers. The fiber is
very white, light, and fine, but is not as strong as that of some of the other well-known varieties,
and the yield is rather low.

ABACA- -A CORDAGE FIBER 51

Puteean. --The term "Puteean" is somewhat indiscriminately applied to inferior varieties
of abaca. For this reason Puteean abaca has a bad reputation that may not be altogether deserved.
The real Puteean may easily be mistaken for Maguindanao. In size and color of stalk it is
similar to Maguindanao, but the Puteean stalk is less tapering and the leaves are less arched
than those of Maguindanao.. This is a medium-sized to large variety. It is not generally regarded
as hardy. It produces relatively few suckers, about the same number as Tangongon. The fiber
is very white, fine, and light but difficult to strip.

The ideal variety of abaca would combine resistance to drought, adaptability to many
different types of soil, high yield of easily stripped fiber of good quality, earliness of bearing,
and a long productive life.72 That variety has yet to be developed.

Espino and Novero (65) made a study of 43 varieties of abaca and evaluated them on the
basis of vegetative characters, ignoring fiber properties. As criteria they used number of stalks
per hill, length and size of stalks, and number and depth of roots. The varieties found to have
the maximum number of desirable qualities were Baguisanon Basag, Baguisanon Lawaan, Bulao,
Itom, Lagurhuan, and Libuton. In spite of the fact that these varieties are above the average in
their ability to stool well, to produce stalks of exceptional size and length, and to send out roots
capable of anchoring the heavy stalks, none of them have gained wide acceptance among Philippine
abaca planters. Since fiber is the prime prerequisite in abaca, perhaps the reason for their lack
of popular favor is to be found in the quantity or quality of their fiber; Libuton, for instance,
produces a relatively low yield of fiber, and Bulao and the Baguisanons produce a weak one.

In 1927 the Philippine Bureau of Agriculture, after testing 40 varieties of abaca, distributed
8, as follows (153):

Variety Percentage of fiber Tensile strength,

per stalk grams per gram-meter

Layahon 2.90 61,964

Sinamor-o 2.98 54,139

Alman 2.50 54,135

Lagurhuan nga Itom 2.66 51,211

Libuton 1.40 52, 150

Sinaba 1.80 50,327

Bungulanon 2. 30 47, 366

Maguindanao 1.75 45,344
In 1939 the Philippine Department of Agriculture and Commerce ( 137) listed as the important
varieties of commerce in the Islands:

Mindanao: Tangongon, Bungulanon, Maguindanao

Leyte: Layahon, Alman, Sinamoro, and Lagurhuan

Albay: Itom, Samina Putitomatogacan, and Puti

Laguna: Putian [Puteean]

Only 6 varieties are grown commercially in Central America: Tangongon, Bungulanon,
Maguindanao, Libuton, Sinaba, and Puteean. 73 Of these Bungulanon represents roughly 85 per-
cent, Maguindanao, 10 percent, and the other varieties 5 percent of the acreage.

Three varieties have been introduced into Malaya, and the Department of Agriculture has
carried out a series of experiments to determine the relative value of the three (13). Of these
Tangongon was found to be especially hardy, with a fiber yield of 1. 9 to 2 percent; Bungulanon
was less hardy, but yielded 2. 25 to 2. 3 percent of fiber; Baguisanon yielded only 1.0 to 1.5 per-
cent.

Canton, Amokid, and Pakol. --There are several species of plants belonging to the banana
family which go under the name canton, but only Canton-pute is stripped and marketed in large
quantities. The plant from which canton fiber is obtained is said to be a natural hybrid between
the edible banana (Musa paradisiaca var. sapientum) and abaca (M. textilis) (167) or between
abaca and pakol, the wild banana (3).

Canton is easily distinguished from abaca when growing in the field. In shape the canton
leaf is about midway between that of the abaca and the banana --less rounded at the tip than the
banana and. less pointed than the abaca. The leaves of canton, particularly the young ones, have
a pinkish tinge on the under side, while the midrib has a marked pinkish color. The abaca leaf

72 See Footnote No. 43.

7 3 See Footnote No. 39.

52 U. S.. DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE

is more brittle than the canton leaf, and the banana leaf is tougher than either. The dark marginal
line on the under side of the leaf that is characteristic of abaca (fig. 4) is not found in canton.

There are at least 4 varieties of canton recognized in Albay, of which Morado and Itom are
the commonest. The fiber of these 4 varieties is not materially different in general appearance,
but it differs in strength. The variety Morado produces the best and strongest of the canton fibers, j
The stalk has a pinkish tinge, but this is a more or less general characteristic of all varieties
of canton. Itom is a large variety. Its fiber has a greenish tinge, and is second in strength only
to Morado. The plant of the Taguiptipon resembles the Itom plant, except that the stalk has black-
ish spots. In strength its fiber ranks third. The plant of the Panlayog variety resembles Itom in
color, but it grows taller and is slenderer than Itom. If the stalk grows straight, -the fiber is as
strong as that of Itom; but if the stalk is inclined, the fiber is less strong, and, if much inclined,
the fiber is very weak. The fiber of this variety is generally regarded as the weakest of the 4.

Canton fiber closely resembles that of abaca. The fiber produced by the best varieties of
canton, when freshly cleaned, is nearly as strong as abaca, but tends to deteriorate in quality
after a few months. The production of canton fiber creates a difficult problem for the fiber
inspection service for, although canton is readily distinguished from abaca in the field and in the
strick, it is not easily recognized when it is mixed in as an adulterant of abaca fiber. If it is
impracticable to separate the two, Government regulations require that the whole admixture be
labeled canton, even though canton may form only a small part of it.

According to Dewey,7* it is easier to distinguish the fine grades of canton from the fine
grades of abaca than it is to distinguish the coarse grades of canton from the coarse grades of
abaca. The fine grades of canton tend to be light and fluffy in appearance.

Among the points of difference between canton and abaca mentioned by Dewey are the
following:

Smell. --Canton always has a characteristic musty smell, which is quite different from the
fresh, clean smell of abaca. Even 25 percent of canton mixed with abaca will clearly show this
difference.

Ends. --In canton the ends, or tips, of the fiber are somewhat different from the tips of
abaca. In the lower grades, the tips of canton are coarser and more like coarse hay than the tips
of abaca. The tips of canton are usually lighter in color than those of abaca, but in the baba
grades of canton this is not noticeable. In the finer grades of canton the tips tend to be curly and
fluffy.

Breakage. --Abaca breaks with more of a snap than canton. The broken ends of canton are
more straggling than those of abaca. The canton ends usually show several very fine slender
fibers, while the abaca ends are clean and sharp.

Ash. --Canton, when burned, leaves less ash than abaca and the ash is whiter.

Two other inferior fibers that present a problem when mixed with abaca are those stripped
from amokid, which appears to be a true but inferior variety of abaca, and that from pakol. The
fiber produced by pakol is softer than that of normal abaca, is rather dull and dingy in appearance,
and is relatively weak. It is not satisfactory for cordage purposes. 75

PLANT IMPROVEMENT

Scientists in the Philippines have long recognized the need for developing varieties of abaca
adapted to different types of soil and climate, to find drought-resistant varieties, and varieties
that would provide a superior quality of fiber. Only in Davao has attention been given to these
things. Most of the breeding experiments carried on by the Government have been for the purpose
of developing varieties resistant to certain destructive diseases, and these experiments have not
been numerous.76 The persistent desire of the farmers to return to the growing of abaca in
Cavite, Batangas, and Laguna after the plantations were destroyed by the bunchy top disease
prompted the Bureau of Plant Industry of the Philippine Government to undertake a series of
breeding experiments for the purpose of developing varieties that would be immune to this disease.

The experiments were begun by Calinisan and Hernandez (33) in 1928 at Silang, Cavite. Ten
varieties were chosen for the experiments, namely, Tangongon, Maguindanao, Balunganon, Balunan
Jolo, Lawisid, Punucan, Putian (Puteean), Sinamoro Pula, and Sinamoro Puti. No completely
resistant variety was found among these 10. Some varieties developed a certain degree of resistanc
ance, whereas others that had shown slight resistance at first became more susceptible and
succumbed to the disease.

74 DEWEY, L. H. Unpublished notes. (U. S. Bur. Plant Indus., Soils, and Agr. Engin., Div. Cotton and Other Fiber Crops and
Dis.) [n. d.]

75 EDWARDS, H. T. REPORT ON FIBER INVESTIGATION IN NEW YORK, JAMAICA, COLOMBIA, THE CANAL ZONE,
PANAMA, COSTA RICA, GUATEMALA, AND CUBA. 15 pp. Mar. 27, to Apr. 21, 1940. [Unpublished manuscript.]

76 BOYLE, H. H. HEART ROT OF THE ABACA (MANILA HEMP). 4 pp. 1923. [Unpublished manuscript.]

ABACA- -A CORDAGE FIBER 53

After about 2 years of field observations, the Putian variety was found to be highly resist-
ant to the bunchy top disease. It was also well adapted to local conditions, and the fiber is
fairly good. Since none of the other varieties merited further study they were dropped and the
experiment was continued with the Putian. Field observations were made from November 1930
to August 1934. The results of 4 years' observations showed the Putian variety to be almost
96 percent resistant to bunchy top. Artificial inoculations confirmed the results of the field
experiments. Of 96 Putian plants to which aphids (Pentalonia nigronervosa) were transferred,
none became infected. In 1936 Calinisan and Hernandez reported that the possibility of rehabil-
itating the abaca industry in Cavite had been demonstrated by the results with the Putian variety.
Nevertheless in 1937, after a survey of the situation in Cavite, Laguna, and Batangas, Edwards77
stated that, "there continues to be discussion regarding the rehabilitation of this industry by the
planting of resistant or immune varieties of abaca, but very little has been done in this direction
as yet. "

The need for better varieties adapted to Central American conditions is recognized by
those interested in the production of abaca in the Western Hemisphere, and some breeding
experiments are under way. The object of a breeding program, as assembled from various
references, would be to develop a variety that will contain the desirable qualities of the hest
varieties and none of their undesirable ones. The desirable qualities in abaca are large and tall
stalks, 3 meters in height, 20-cm. diameter at base; more than 20 leaf sheaths per stalk; more
than 150 roots on each mature plant; roots as deep as 1 meter below the surface of the soil and
more than 300 roots around the hill; more than 7 leaves; and 2. 5 percent of fiber or more.

The undesirable qualities in abaca are less than 10 stalks per hill; stalks less than 1 to 2
meters in height; stalks less than 15 cm. at base; less than 140 roots around the hill; less than
6 leaves each; and 2.4 percent of fiber or less.

The qualities to be considered in breeding for superior varieties are those related to (1)
production, namely, high fiber content, adaptability to different soil and climatic conditions,
stooling habit, resistance to drought, resistance to lodging, earliness of bearing, diameter and
length of stalk, a long productive life, and hybrid vigor; (2) disease resistance; and (3) quality
of fiber--stem type as it influences decortication, color, softness, strength, fineness, and other
fiber characters.

Since the quality of fiber differs in different varieties and in varieties grown in different
localities, it would be advisable to use many varieties in the tests. This, of course, would
mean the importation of new varieties from the Philippines. At present the material available
for breeding work in Central America consists for the most part of the varieties Bungulanon,
Maguindanao, Tangongon, Libuton, Sinaba, Puteean, and some crosses and seedlings.

New varieties may be developed by the use of true seed. Abaca is an open-pollinated
plant and the seedling progeny, therefore, are hybrids. As might be expected, great variability
has been found in seedlings, even from the same parent plant. Good abaca seeds are hard to
secure, and some varieties are known to be self-sterile; the seeds are slow in germinating; and
seed production from seedlings requires 30 months. In spite of these difficulties the growth of
numerous plant seedlings from true seeds offers the possibility of obtaining a good seedling with
the desirable characters.

Attempts should be made to self abaca varieties. This would not be simple, for by the time
the male flowers in a spike shed their pollen, the female flowers are no longer receptive. Pollen
of other plants like maize and Rubus has been kept viable in cold storage for several days to 2
years, and possibly abaca pollen could be kept viable in the same way and used to pollinate female
flowers on another stalk in the same hill that flowered later. Thus selfing would be accomplished,
even though a different flower stalk were pollinated. If varieties can be selfed and made genetically
pure, such lines could be crossed and greater hybrid vigor might be obtained, as has been done
with corn and other crops. Abaca could be asexually propagated from a hybrid, and if the hybrid
showed exceptional hybrid vigor or other desirable characters, the end results would be obtained.
The main obstacles in abaca breeding are the 30 months required for a generation from seed to
seed, and some self-sterility.

In many crop plants maturity can be hastened by lengthening or shortening the period of
exposure to light. How. abaca would be affected by such treatment is not known, but its response
to length of day and intensity of illumination are factors that should be studied.

The use of X-ray, radium, and colchicine for inducing polyploid chromosome mutations in
abaca, as has been done so successfully with some other plants, would certainly be worth the time
and effort required. Treatment of jute seeds with X-ray is reported to have had spectacular
results (15). A gigantic jute plant has been grown from X-ray treated seeds, reaching 22. 5 feet
in height with a basal diameter of 2. 5 inches, whereas the record size of a plant from untreated
seeds is 15 feet in height and 1 inch in basal diameter.

77 See Footnote No. 26.

54 U. S. DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE

A triple hybrid cotton derived from Asiatic cotton, American upland, and a wild cotton has
recently been produced through the use of colchicine, a treatment that doubled the number of
chromosomes. Fiber of this hybrid has a breaking strength 75 percent greater than that of
commercial varieties in general use.

If vegetative mutations are produced by means of chromosome mutations, the plants can
be propagated asexually, thus continuing the polyploid structure.

To summarize: the procedure called for in an abaca-breeding program in the Western
Hemisphere would include:

(1) New introductions from the Philippines.

(2) Seed (true) selection and nursery testing.

(3) Hybridization.

(4) Selfing and hybridization for hybrid vigor.

(5) X-ray and colchicine treatments to produce mutations.

HARVESTING AND CLEANING

When- the blossom appears the abaca stalk is ready for cutting. The first stalks should be
ready for harvesting about 1 1/2 to 2 years after planting, at which time the mat consists of 12
to 30 stalks in all stages of development. Usually 2 to 4 can be harvested at one time and sub-
sequent cuttings can be made every 4 to 6 months for 10 to 15 years. In the Philippines the
minimum height of a stem suitable for harvesting is considered to be 8 feet. In harvesting the
crop the whole stalk is cut down, and soon thereafter the extraction of fiber begins (fig. 19).

PHILIPPINE ISLANDS

The process of extracting the fiber practiced almost universally in the Philippines consists
of two operations (1) separating the outer layer or "tuxy" from each leaf sheath (fig. 20), and (2)
scraping the pulp and extraneous matter from the tuxy by drawing it under a knife. The two
operations are known as tuxying and stripping or cleaning.

The first operation in the extraction of the fiber is to insert the point of a knife between the
outer and the middle layers of a sheath and then pull off the outer fibrous layer in strips (tuxies)
2 to 3 inches wide running the whole length of the sheath. Each successive sheath is "tuxied" in
this fashion until the center fiberless core is reached. According to their position in the pseu-
dostem, the sheaths vary in length, shape, color, and in the texture and character of their fiber.
One trunk may yield as many as 20 or more leaf sheaths that can be stripped for fiber (62).

On the basis of color and quality of fiber the sheaths of Philippine abaca fall into four
groups, namely, baba" (usually 3 sheaths), segunda baba (3 or 4 sheaths), middle (4 or 5), and
ubud (7 or 8), the baba being the outermost sheaths and the ubud the innermost.

The total weight of the tuxies from the outside sheaths (baba) is about 1 3 to 15 percent of
the total weight of all tuxies, and about 2 percent of the total weight of the stalk; the total weight
of the tuxies from the sheaths next to the outside (segunda baba) usually averages about 17 per-
cent of the total weight of all tuxies and about 2-1/2 to 3 percent of the total weight of the stalk;*
the weight of the tuxies from the middle sheaths averages about 27 percent of the weight of all
tuxies and about 4 to 4-1/2 percent of the weight of the stalk; and the weight of the tuxies from the
inner sheaths (ubud) averages about 42 percent of the total weight of all tuxies, and about 6 per-
cent of the total weight of the stalk ( 157) .

Since each series of leaf sheaths produces a definite grade of fiber, separation of tuxies
according to origin in the pseudostem would greatly facilitate the grading of the fiber, and in
Albay the tuxies are usually separated at the stripping knife into three groups, first and second
baba and the innermost leaf sheaths. Failure to make this preliminary classification results not
only in losses to the planters, but also in deterioration in the quality of the fiber.

Since the fiber represents so small a proportion of the stalk (2 to 3 percent of the weight
of the stalk), it is advantageous to strip the fibrous layer from the sheath in the field, and this
the Filipino does. As he removes the outer fiber-bearing layer of each sheath he discards the
rest, leaving it to decompose in the field. As soon as a sufficient quantity of these strips or
tuxies has accumulated they are tied into bundles and carried to the stripping shed. There they
are cleaned of the adhering pulp and cellular matter.

Three methods of cleaning abaca fiber are used in the Philippines: (1) stripping by hand;
(2) stripping by small spindle machines; and (3) by large semiautomatic machines. As late as
1937 Edwards ' estimated that about 70 percent of the total Philippine production was cleaned
by the hand- stripping method. By this method the tuxy is held in the hand and drawn under a

78 See Footnote No. 26.

ABACA- -A CORDAGE FIBER

Figure 19. --Cutting abaca stalks in Davao Province, Republic of the Philippines.

serrated knife pressed against a block of wood by means of a spring pole (fig. 21). The more
numerous the serrations of the knife and the greater the pressure on the tuxy, the finer will be
the fiber and the smaller the yield. Waste will be greater and work will be harder. The finest
fiber can be and is produced by the hand-stripping method, but when prices are low or when the
difference in price between fiber of coarse and excellent cleaning is not such as to justify the
strenuous labor required to remove all the waste from the fiber, the worker is likely to release
the pressure on the tuxy, thus producing a larger quantity but a coarser grade of fiber. During
the depression year of 1932, when prices were exceptionally low, it was estimated that most of
the fiber produced in Leyte was pulpy and about 80 percent of the fiber from Negros was
damaged (182) . Part of the trouble arose from the use of knives of uneven teething. With such
knives it is impossible to strip a uniform grade of fiber.

U. S. DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE

Figure 20. --Ribbons or tuxies are stripped from the abaca sheath (right), then drawn under a knife
(center) to remove the pulpy tissue, after which the cleaned fiber is hung up to dry (left).

Figure 21. --Stripping fiber by hand, Republic of the Philippines.

ABACA- -A CORDAGE FIBER

Because of the seriousness of the situation the Bureau of Plant Industry of the Philippine
Department of Agriculture ran a series of experiments to determine the type of knife that should
be used to produce the precise grade of fiber required by the market ( 182). "Benito" knives
(fig. 22) were set on the block of wood with the force applied as follows: No. 0 knife (no serrations),
84 pounds; No. 46 (46 serrations to the inch), 72 pounds; No. 40 (40 serrations), 64 pounds;
No. 30, 56 pounds; No. 24, 52 pounds; and No. 16, 48 pounds.

The tuxies, all from the variety Itom, were separated according to origin in the pseudostem
into four groups: 4 outermost leaf sheaths; 4 second outer leaf sheaths; 4 inner leaf sheaths; and
innermost leaf sheaths. The results of the tests showed that to produce fiber of Good Current
(CD) grade, knife No. 0 should be used; for Midway (E) grade, knife 46; for F grade, knife 40;
for Superior Seconds No. 1 (Jl) grade, knife 24; and for Coarse (LI) grade, knife 16. The
experiments also showed that the fewer the number of serrations per inch of blade the greater
was the quantity of fiber produced; knife No. 0 (unserrated) produced the smallest quantity but
the highest quality of fiber, and knife No. 16 produced the most.

BENITO ABACA STRIPPING KNIVES

Figure 22.— "Benito" knives used (or stripping abaca in the Republic of the Philippines.
Figures indicate number of serrations per inch. The number of serrations and the pressure
applied to the knives largely determine the quality of fiber produced. (From Torres and
Cruz: "Efficiency of Different Benito Knives for Stripping Abaca." Philippine Journal of
Agriculture.)

U. S. DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE

At the prices prevailing in February 1940 the quantity produced with knife No. 46, at a
force of 72 pounds, would have exceeded in value that produced by any of the other knives.

In the Philippines the fiber is hung in the sun to dry as soon as it is stripped (fig. 23).
The length of the drying period depends both on the weather and on the quantity of pulpy material
adhering to the fiber. Torres and Cruz ( 182) determined the number of hours required for
drying fiber stripped with the different knives, as follows:

Nos. 0, 46, and 40 not exceeding 5 hours on a clear day.

Nos. 30, 24, and 16 as much as 22 hours.

Figure 23. --Drying abaca in the Philippines.

Fibers requiring as much as 22 hours to dry, especially if the days are cloudy or rainy,
are liable to attack by molds and other deteriorating agents.

The percentage of moisture present in the fibers varied inversely with the number of
serrations of the stripping knife; i. e. , the fewer the serrations the greater the quantity of
moisture present in the fiber.

Balmaceda and Bartolome,'" discussing cultural and cleaning operations on Philippine
abaca plantations shortly before the outbreak of war, divided the plantations into three groups:
(1) The well-organized plantations; (2) the big haciendas; and (3) the ordinary small plantations.

To the first group, represented by the Japanese in Davao, belong the plantations that apply
modern agricultural methods, such as uniform planting, cultivation, use of the small spindle
machines, artificial methods of drying fiber or drying it as soon as it is stripped. To the
second group belong the big haciendas that still follow the old methods of planting and caring
for the crop, but use small machinery or animal power for cleaning and either dry the fiber
immediately after stripping or hang it under a roof to dry during the night. To the third group
belong the thousands of small farmers who have no knowledge of modern agricultural practices
and "who cannot afford or do not care to have a better knife than a piece of metal serrated with
the aid of their own bolo. When the fiber is stripped they hang it in the open to dry. If it rains
they leave the fiber alone until good 'Old Sol1 shines again and dries it. . . The majority of the
plantations are still in the last group. " 80

79 See Footnote No. 1.

80 See Footnote No. 1.

ABACA- -A CORDAGE FIBER 59

Only two large semiautomatic decorticating machines such as are used for cleaning sisal
were employed in the Philippines before World War II. 81 One of these belonged to the Inter-
national Harvester Company, the other to the Furukawa plantation.

On most of the Japanese plantations, however, a small, "hagotan" machine - an American
invention - was in constant use. Its principal feature is a revolving cylinder kept in motion by a
small engine or a water wheel. The tuxy is inserted under the blade and the butt end is wound
around the cylinder or spindle. The cylinder as it revolves helps to pull the strips under the
knife (fig. 24).

The advantage of this machine is that it reduces the amount of labor required to do the
work, eases the burden on the stripper, gives a larger out-turn of fiber, and lowers the cost of
production. These machines when properly operated will produce medium to high grade fiber,
but they do not produce the highest grade. Although the greater part of the fiber on the Japanese
plantations was cleaned with the small spindle machine, the Japanese developed a system of hand
stripping that was efficient and profitable. A gang of strippers under the supervision of a foreman
were paid so much per kilo for the fiber cleaned, the amount depending on the quality cleaned.
The strippers were required to produce not less than a certain quantity of fiber per day, the
minimum requirement being usually about 10 kilos of wet fiber, or about 6-1/2 kilos (14-1/3 lbs.)
of dry fiber. On many plantations the use of serrated knives was forbidden. In 1928 Edwards
(57) reported that a good stripper could, without difficulty, earn from 1 . 50 to 2 pesos (1 peso =
10 cents) per day.

It has been estimated that 6 men using a hagotan can c lean from 2 to 3 piculs of fiber of
good quality in one day, or about 50 to 70 pounds per man without any undue physical exertion.
Using the common hand stripping knife, 2 men, by extremely hard labor, can only produce about
25 to 40 pounds of fiber of the same quality, or at most 20 pounds per man per day. Laborers
who strip by hand usually work only 3 or 4 days a week, whereas those using the hagotan can work
throughout the week without rest.

In spite of the obvious advantages of the hagotan and the Government's efforts to extend its
use, it h^s never been popular in the northern provinces.

In 1935- Balmaceda and Bartolome, 82 comparing the primitive methods of these provinces
with the advanced methods of Davao, predicted that "if, during the next ten years, no improvement
is made in the present method of stripping and handling of fiber in the Bicol and Visayan regions,
it is feared that the plantations in these regions will gradually disappear or be abandoned. "

After the fiber is cleaned it must be dried immediately. Failure to do so results in reduced
luster and loss of tensile strength. The International Harvester Company uses an artificial drier
along with its decorticator in Davao. This machine dries the fiber as soon as it is extracted.

In prewar days the dried fiber was usually sold by the small farmer to a Chinese middleman,
but the Japanese through an efficient auction system, sold theirs to the highest bidder.

All fiber intended for export is taken to a warehouse (fig. 25), where it is inspected and
graded. There an inspector selects at random about 5 percent of each lot, opens and examines it.
Should he find it below the fixed standard he marks it "I. C. " in red, meaning inspected and con-
demned, and it cannot be exported under the grade mark intended by the packer. A sharp watch
is kept by inspectors for adulterated fiber and for bales that contain wet fiber. The latter are
opened, and the fiber is dried and reinspected. Fiber for export is packed in bales weighing
278. 3 lbs. , and the weight of the bales is checked before shipping.

CENTRAL AMERICA

In Central America there is no small-holder system of growing abaca where the farmer and
his family do their own planting, cultivating, stripping, drying, and selling. Practically all the
abaca grown in Central America is on large plantations owned by the United Fruit Company and
operated for the United States Government. The long experience of this Company in the cultiva-
tion of another Musa, the banana, has given it a working knowledge of the requirements of Musa
textilis and an understanding of how to cope with many of the problems that have arisen in its
production. The Filipinos, because they had a monopoly of the industry, never received the
benefits of research on abaca that competition from other countries might have given them.

Following the accepted practice in the Philippines, the harvesting program in Central
America was so designed that each area would be cut over 4 times a year and only mature stalks
would be harvested. Because of the necessity of salvaging the fiber from the numerous "tip-over"
plants, how'ever, this plan has had to be modified.

81 See Footnote No. 1.

82 See Footnote No. 1.

261543 O - 54 - 5

U. S. DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE

Figure 24. —A, Hagotan or spindle machine used in chining abaca fiber in the Philippines. _B, Battery of hagotans on an abaca

plantation in Davao Province. (Photo from Lucky Studio, Davao.)

ABACA- -A CORDAGE FIBER

*-"*-'■'*;>* 2&*©f%

Figure 25. --Grading abaca fiber, Philippines. Proper grading is essential to maintain confidence of buyers and insure

highest values for different qualities.

Before harvesting the stalks, the cutters remove all the leaves from the plant to be cut
with a banana knife or pulla (fig. 26) and then cut the stalk close to the ground, discarding the
upper part from about the point of attachment of the last dead leaf. The stalk is then cut into
sections or "junks". The maximum length of a junk is 6 feet, which is the greatest length that
the decorticating machines can process, and the minimum length is 4 feet, which is the shortest
length that can be efficiently cleaned and is desired for manufacturing. Keeping in mind a 6-foot
maximum and a 4-foot minimum, the cutter is instructed to cut the junks the maximum length
when practicable, but to be sure to conserve the utmost fiber possible. For example, stalks of
8 and 12 feet should be divided into 2 junks of even length, stalks of 18 feet into 3 junks of even
length. In cases where some fiber must be lost, however, as when stalks are over 6 feet and
less than 8, the junk is cut from the lower part of the stalk where the quantity of fiber is largest.

In addition to the tip-over plants, which must be salvaged, many small plants are broken
during harvesting operations. Since even small plants contain valuable fiber, all damaged plants
that will yield a junk of 4 feet are harvested.

After the stalks are sectioned, the junks are carried from the cutter to the railroad by pack
mule. The average load is 300 to 400 pounds, carried in slings, the junks being pushed in first
on one side of the animal, then on the other. To unload, the slings are unhooked and the junks
are allowed to fall to the ground.

Before the junks are loaded on to the cars, all dead leaves are removed and any sheaths
shorter than four feet are discarded. The junks are then placed crosswise on the flat cars. Once
loaded, the junks are taken immediately to the decorticator.

In early 1940 when the 1, 000 -acre plantation of abaca planted in 1937 near Almirante,
Panama, had matured and was ready for stripping, no satisfactory large fiber-cleaning machine
was available for stripping it. Accordingly, 24 small machines of the hagotan type were con-
structed and installed with a view of saving fiber that would otherwise be lost and of determining
if it would be possible to operate these machines economically in Panama.

U. S. DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE

Figure 26.— Cutting off the leaves preparatory to harvesting abaca stalks in Central America.

Edwards 83 reported that the operators were being paid 5 cents per pound of dry fiber
cleaned and were cleaning from 20 to 30 pounds of dry fiber per day.

It Was estimated that the total cost of producing this fiber was from 10 to 12 cents per
pound, and the value of the fiber in the New York market was from 5 to 6 cents. Large automatic
machines of the "Corona" type had for some time been successfully used in Sumatra, where
practically all abaca was machine -cleaned, and to a very limited extent they had been used in
the Philippines for cleaning a type of abaca fiber known in the trade as "Deco" (decorticated)
fiber. The Sumatra machine-cleaned fiber, though used to some extent in the United States, has
not been considered the equal in quality of the highest grades of hand-cleaned and hagotan-cleaned
Philippine fiber, and the Philippine Deco fiber is rather below the average quality of Sumatra
abaca fiber. Si

83 See Footnote No. 75.

84 See Footnote No. 75.

ABACA- -A CORDAGE FIBER

The Panama abaca project was planned with the end in view of cleaning the fiber with a
machine of the Corona type (fig. 27), the expectation being that this machine, if efficiently-
operated, would produce a fiber that could be sold at a price approximately equivalent to the
current price of the medium grades of Philippine abaca fiber. Certain improvements were made
to speed up operations and to reduce the hand labor required, and as soon as practicable, these
machines were installed.

Figure 27.-- Abaca deeorticator or fiber cleaning unit. This includes: feed table for stalks, crusher (background), decorticator, fiber
wringer rolls, mechanical brasher (foreground) and the line for fiber grading. (Photo courtesy of H. E. Counter).

The abaca stalks to be processed on this machine are placed on a conveyor, which carries
them through an automatic stamp crusher or rolls that partially crush each stalk to the form of
a flat blanket. This "blanket" then moves on a flat conveyor to a rope line conveyor, which
grasps and holds it a little to one side of its center, allowing the ends to hang down free on
either side. This rope line conveyor then carries the abaca through the cleaning units. First
the longer end of the fiber in the rope conveyor is scraped and simultaneously cleaned with a
spray of water under pressure, after which the blanket of cleaned fiber is grasped by another
rope conveyor and a second scrajper cleans the other end. The cleaned wet fiber is then drawn
through wringer or squeeze rolls which squeezes out excess water to partially dry the fiber. The
fiber then passes on into a dryer and from there to a baling press. Before January 1, 1949,
Central American abaca was put up in bales of 275 pounds each; now each bale contains 300 pounds.

THE FIBER

DESCRIPTION

The term "abaca" is used in the Philippine Islands to designate both the plant Musa textilis
and its fiber. "Manila hemp" or simply "manila" are trade terms used in the United States and

64 U. S. DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE

some foreign countries to designate the fiber alone. The term "abaca" is being used more
commonly in the United States than formerly and it would be very desirable if it were used by all
and the term "Manila hemp" entirely discontinued.

As previously stated, the false stalk or "trunk" of the abaca plant is made up of a number
of leaf sheaths. The commercial fiber is extracted from these sheaths; no fiber is obtained from
the expanded leaf blades that form the upper canopy of the plant or from the fleshy central flower
stalk. The raw fiber of commerce is a long strand that runs the entire length of the leaf sheath.
The length of the fiber varies therefore with the height of the plant and the age of the sheath from
which it is obtained. All leaf sheaths do not run the entire length of the false stem. The fiber
from the oldest or outside sheaths is usually the shortest fiber obtained from the stalk, and that
from the inner sheaths is the longest. Thus abaca fiber may vary in length from, 3 to 9 feet or
more. Regulations of the Philippine Islands governing the grading of abaca fiber designate fiber
as "very long" when it exceeds 3 meters; "long" when it is 2-1/2 to 3 meters; "normal" when it
is 1-1/2 to 2-1/2 meters; and "short" when it is under 1-1/2 meters (92). The Philippine Fiber
Inspection Administrative Order No. 4, Manila, 1934, states that the minimum length is 60 centi-
meters, and the same order illustrated graphically the width of the fibers when the cleaning is
either fair, coarse, or very coarse, varying from 1 mm. to 3 mm. in width of strands. The
description states that in good cleaning the fiber is produced in the form of filaments which do
not exceed 1/2 mm. in average width; for fair cleaning the filaments do not exceed 1 mm. in
average width; and for coarse cleaning the filaments are often flat, averaging over 1 mm. but
less than 1-1/2 mm. Filaments over 1-1/2 in width are graded as very coarse cleaning or waste
as the inspectors may decide. Length in itself is not a determining factor in the quality of
Philippine abaca. In cleaning abaca on the large semiautomatic decorticator the length is governed
by the ability of the machine to handle long fiber.

In Central America, where all abaca fiber is cleaned on decorticating machines, the mini-
mum length of fiber admitted in the principal grades is 30 inches.85 All stricks of less than 30
inches or all in which the bulk of the fiber is below this limit must be graded as tow. However,
all long fiber as well as tow is abaca fiber and the length classification is one of trade differ-
entiation in respect to utilitarian value. In most discussions of the fiber descriptions involving
length are applicable to the long fiber, not the tow grades.

The color of abaca fiber is influenced by a number of factors. Primarily these are: the
color of the leaf sheath or the variety from which the fiber is extracted; the extent of the cleaning;
and the care taken in drying the fiber after it has been extracted. The fiber varies from light
purple, red, or brown to "light ivory" or almost white. The white fiber is obtained from the
innermost leaf sheaths and the light purple or red from the outer sheaths. Brown in various
shades appears in some of the lower grades of fiber. Oxidation of the pulpy material remaining
on the fiber as a result of poor cleaning influences the color. The colors mentioned above are
more or less natural colors resulting from factors encountered in the usual method of preparation.
But the fiber may also reveal various shades and hues resulting from damage from unnatural
causes.

An interesting study to improve the color and appearance of abaca fiber by chemical treat-
ment was reported by Sherman (166) . The research which he described was undertaken to change,
say, J grade or lower to F grade or higher without serious loss of tensile strength. While
Sherman reported improvements in the color, appearance, and texture of the fibers bleached,
his technique involved several liquid immersions in alkali and acid solutions which would certainly
prove costly in labor and production. Further, the difficulties and danger of insufficient removal
of the chemicals when treating large tonnages of fiber, which were not discussed by Sherman,
would certainly tend to hinder the general adoption of such methods.

MICROSCOPIC CHARACTERS

The commercial fiber strand is composed of numerous fiber cells lying side by side with
overlapping ends and cemented together in bundles. These fiber strands are the strengthening
tissue of the fibrovascular bundles of the leaf sheath. A cross section of the abaca stalk (fig. 6)
shows that the individual leaf sheaths consist of 3 layers, but it is only from the outer layer that
the fiber of commerce is obtained.

The dimensions of the ultimate fiber cells which make up the fiber strands are of such
importance in identifying fibers and estimating their probable value that they have been the subject
of study by many plant histologists and morphologists. The ultimate cell measurements of
approximately 175 species of fiber plants reported in the literature are summarized in table 5.
In some cases the results of different authors vary widely. Nevertheless, the table may be useful
for reference in identification in conjunction with staining and similar test treatments mentioned
under Fiber Adulterants.

85 U. S. OFFICE OF DEFENSE SUPPLIES. STANDARD GRADES OF CENTRAL AMERICA ABACA. Washington, D. C. 1946.

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72 U. S. DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE

The earliest workers emphasized the fact that the cells of important textile and cordage '
fibers have a itio in which the length exceeds the width by several hundred times. For example,
the approxima e ratio of some of the more important textile and cordage fibers are: Flax, 1, 200;
hemp, 1,000; abaca, 250; phormium, 550; jute, 100. In contrast, the ratios of some common
paper fibers are: Pinus strobus 148, _P. ponderosa, 103, Larix laricina 87, and Picea sitchensis
100. Although jute has a short ultimate cell and a low length to width ratio, its spinnability is
increased over a so-called paper fiber by the fact that the fiber cells of jute separate out of the
stem as a bundle of cells, while the cells of the specific paper fibers listed here disintegrate
from each other in preparation. Individual plant cells of less than one-half inch in length are at
the lowest limit of practical mechanical spinnability.

While in general the length-width ratio is very important, the degree to which the cementing
materials that bind the cells together may break down is also important. In the common textile
and cordage fibers, in which the fiber cells cling together in bundles, the actions of retting,
scutching, decortication, and washing do not readily separate them from one another. However,
in a plant like Asclepias syriaca which has a long fiber cell, 30 mm. , and a length-width ratio
of over 1,000, the retting action cannot be sufficiently controlled in practice to prevent most of
the cells from separating, and when this occurs the result is a mass of tow fiber which is
difficult to clean and is low in value. In ramie also the very long cells have a tendency to
separate in the degumming process, which accounts for the difficulty of obtaining ramie line
fiber in degumming and by ordinary flax and hemp retting and scutching methods.

The strength of the yarns manufactured from fibers depends in part upon the ability of
their plant cements to withstand dissolution in ordinary use from wetting and atmospheric changes.
One might postulate that in general the longer the fiber cells and the more compact the fiber
bundles, the slower will be the destructive action on the cements which bind the fibers together.
If this is a correct assumption, it will account in part for the fact that the fibers with a ratio
above 200:1 (length to width) are the most important in commerce.

In abaca the ultimate fiber cells which make up the fiber strands have been measured by
numerous research workers. Espino and Esguerra (64) have shown the fiber dimensions
obtained from six varieties of abaca taken from different portions of the leaf sheath. The fiber
cells of these varieties ranged in length from 2. 6 to 8.4 mm. on the average, while the gross
diameter for the different varieties ranged from 14 to 35 microns. The thickness of the cell
walls ranged from 3. 2 to 8. 0 microns and the diameter of the lumen from 3 to 28 microns.

Espino and Esguerra found that the variety Bungulanon had the longest and also the widest
fiber cells of the 6 varieties studied and Punucan had the shortest. The walls of the fiber cells
near the outer epidermis were found to be very much thicker than those of the fiber of the dis-
carded leaf portion. The lumina of the fiber cells from the discarded portion of the leaf had the
widest diameter. The fibers from the outermost and the innermost leaf sheath were weaker
than those from the sheaths in between. The variety Maguindanao, one of the commonest
varieties in the Western Hemisphere, occupied a more or less intermediate position in reference
to the dimensions of its fiber cells but was below average in tensile strength.

CHEMICAL COMPOSITION

A chemical analysis of abaca fiber was reported by Richmond ( 149) as early as 1906. The
chemical composition of abaca fiber as determined by a number of investigators is shown in
table 6. Care should be taken not to interpret the data too literally, however, because the results
of the different workers were not obtained on the same moisture basis and they did not use the
same technique in arriving at their results. In some cases the results as presented on a per-
centage basis include the moisture, in other cases they do not. Nevertheless, the results are
believed to show the relative amount of the different chemical constituents in which the reader
may have an interest.

Sherman ( 168) analyzed the ash of abaca fiber. Averaging his results of composite samples
made up of different varieties from different districts, he found the ash analyses in terms of per-
centage to be: Si02 12. 32; Fe203 and Al 203 6. 73; CaO 7. 85; MgO 2. 96; K 20 43.. 26; S030. 96;
CI 5.80; Mn02 1.11; and P2 05 1.77. From these figures Sherman concluded that the principal
constituents of the fiber other than nitrogen coming from the soil are potash, iron, alumina, lime,
magnesia, and silica.

Norman ( 1 25) presented analyses of the organic constituents of different fibers which showed
the relation of abaca to other fibers. His analyses indicate that abaca is similar to jute in its
content of cellulose and total furfural but lower than jute in lignin and higher in xylan in the cellu-
lose. Xylan has shorter molecules than the long cellulose chains, and fibers with high yields of
xylan are not associated with high quality textile fibers such as flax and ramie. Norman's
analyses for abaca are somewhat similar to ones for sisal.

ABACA- -A CORDAGE FIBER

TABLE 6. — Percentage composition of abaca fiber as reported by different investigatorr whose

methods of analyses were not uniform

A.G. Norman
(125)

G.F. Richmond
(U9)

Hugo Muller
(123)

A. J . Turner
(184)

Oven-dry bas is

Moisture

Ash

Lignin

Fat and wax

Aqueous extract

Cellulose

Hemicelluloses

Hydrolys is (a)

Hydrolysis (b)

Furfural yield

Cellulose furfural yield....

Xylan in cellulose

Furfural from hemicellulose.
Pectin

Incrusting and pectic matter

Yes

8.51

74.14

9.07

9.04

14.01

No
8.10
1.08

73.68

13.86

20.79

No
11.85

1.02

.63

.97

64.72

21.83

No
10.0

5.1

0.2

1.4

63.2

19.6

0.5

AGENCIES CAUSING DEGENERATIVE CHANGES

Biological Action. --Probably the most frequently encountered and the most destructive
type of degeneration in the physical properties of abaca fiber occurs from biological action as
the primary active agent. While the properties of the fiber are known to vary because of heredi-
tary and environmental factors, these agencies normally do not produce as radical differences
or as severe damage as that caused by biological action. Closely associated with biological
destruction are changes resulting from atmospheric oxidation accelerated in some cases by sun-
light and hydrolysis.

BanTielos and Sherman (19) in a study of Philippine fiber found from observations made in
the field and supported by laboratory experiments that all commercial abaca fiber produced by
present methods of stripping is more or less heavily contaminated with bacteria and that the
juices and soluble substances accompanying the fiber furnish the medium for their prompt and
vigorous growth. The damaging effect produced on the fiber by biological flora appears to be
caused by the acid fermentation products of its soluble constituents as well as by direct action
of the bacteria on the fiber. To understand the biological deterioration that occurs in abaca fiber,
it must be remembered that the preparation of the fiber in the field is carried out under conditions
where cellulose-decaying organisms are very prevalent because of the large amount of plant
tissue other than fiber that is permitted to decay at the base of the plants. This refuse provides
ample inoculating material to which the fiber is exposed when stripped in the field.

In 1934 the acting secretary (136) of the Department of Agriculture and Commerce of the
Philippine Islands in his annual report stated that complete disinfection of infected abaca by
means of formalin fumes had been accomplished in the laboratory, and it remained only to apply
this finding in adequate airtight chambers in order to disinfect the abaca bales economically on
a commercial scale. Elaborating further, he said: "The studies on deterioration of abaca tend
to show that fumigation with formalin and sea water treatment partially arrest the process. From
the behavior of the casual organisms Aspergillus sp. with best growth at 30. 6 to 38. 7° C. ,
Penicillium sp. and Chactonium [Chaetomium] at 27°to 28° C. , control of deterioration would
seem to hinge on modification of conditions in the bodega L warehouse J , that is, lowering the
temperature by means of good ventilation. "

About 1920 there were many complaints from England regarding unsound fiber imports,
and the belief was freely expressed that some of the abaca was adulterated with canton and pakol.
The deterioration appeared to be more pronounced in the poorly cleaned, lower grades than in
the excellent or good cleaning high grades of fiber. Deterioration was not confined to the fiber
produced in any one locality. The defective fiber was characterized by weakness, brittleness, a
dull dirty dark color and a musty odor, which was stronger in moist than in dry fiber. To deter-
mine the cause of the damaged fiber a study was made by Serrano ( 164), who reported that
organisms belonging to the cellulose-digesting type such as Aspergillus flavus, Penicillium

74 U. S. DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE

glaucum, Chaetomium elatum, and various other species of these three genera, were more
common in the deteriorated samples than in normal fiber, and he showed that these organisms
will cause deterioration when conditions are favorable for their growth.

Serrano stated that examination of fresh newly stripped fiber showed complete absence of
any cellulose -digesting or any other kind of organism. Unfortunately, it is impractical to keep
all organisms off the fiber as they are present in the air and on any surface with which the fiber
may come in contact. However, deterioration can be controlled by taking precautions to prevent
the organisms from developing in dangerous numbers.

Improper drying. --It is well known that organisms develop where there is abundant
moisture. Drying the fiber promptly and thoroughly after cleaning and maintaining a low per-
centage of moisture in the baling and storage operations are prime requisites in preventing
deterioration. Too much stress cannot be laid upon these points. It must be remembered that
abaca is grown in regions of abundant moisture, high humidity throughout the day and night, and
warm temperature. All of these factors are conducive to the growth of the organisms that cause
cellulose deterioration. It is not as important to have an average low percentage of moisture,
possibly 10 percent or less, as it is to have a uniformly low moisture content. In practice fre-
quently the fiber is hung on racks or placed in stricks or hands to field-dry in the sun. The
surface layer of the fiber in the strick, or many stricks with small amounts of fiber, will dry
completely, while larger stricks or ones that have not been as well aerated will dry only par-
tially. Hence, in practice it frequently occurs that while most of the fiber is sufficiently dry to
prevent, rapid biological growth, there are stricks that are baled and stored with too high a
moisture content. Later these cause trouble.

Tirona (176) reported that fiber air-dried for a period of 20 hours tended to be stronger than
that dried only 10 hours. The general practice in the Philippines is to dry fiber 8 to 12 hours or
more, upon the assumption that the period of drying is immaterial. Tirona's studies were made
with more than one variety of abaca and on plants grown under different environmental conditions.
His conclusions suggest the advisability of taking the length of the drying period into account when
determining the comparative strength of abaca fibers, and he points out that a study of the
effective sun-drying period on the strength of abaca fiber might give results of practical interest.

Banuelos and Sherman (19) state that "the freshly stripped fiber is bright in luster, high in
color, very elastic, and somewhat weak. Quick and thorough drying accomplishes the triple
purpose of making permanent the luster; of keeping the color from darkening, except very slowly;
and hardening and toughening the fiber strands, together with the more or less pulpy substances
surrounding them, and thereby reducing the elasticity to normal. The fiber, promptly and well
dried, is then in its best possible physical condition to perform its allotted commercial functions,
which are to maintain its tensile strength, color, and resistance to wear for a reasonably long
time. "

Inadequate circulation of air. --Various experiments not only on fibers but on numerous
crops have shown that inadequate circulation of air in the warehouse is conducive to the growth
of cellulose-digesting organisms. This is particularly true when the fiber stored has a high
moisture content. So far as we now know, the major physical factors that induce biological
deterioration of abaca through a flora infestation are conditions of high moisture, high temperature,
poor air circulation, and long storage, together with some degree of improper cleaning.

Acid content. --As previously stated, abaca fiber deteriorates more readily when it has not
been well cleaned. Sherman and Sherman ( 169) attempted to demonstrate how the presence of
organic acids on the abaca fiber brings about deterioration. They found that the natural acid
content of abaca is greater in the fiber having low tensile strength. They did not state that the
acidity of the abaca sample was a determining or causative factor of its tensile strength, but
they did present results which show a uniform parallelism between its tensile strength and its
acid content.

Action of heat. --The Imperial Institute once made an extensive investigation to determine
why the fiber then being exported by the Philippines arrived in England in a weak or damaged con-
dition. The investigation (76) showed that the damage was due to a degradation of the cellulose,
doubtless of bacterial origin, promoted by prolonged storage in a moist condition at a tropical
temperature. Altson88showed that abaca fiber exposed to temperatures of 100 C. for 2 days or
to 70 C. for 20 days under moist conditions became weaker and more brittle and the color turned
darker. Abaca fiber subject to the same temperatures for the same length of time but kept under
dry conditions was not found to have deteriorated if the fiber was reconditioned after the heating
and allowed to regain its normal atmospheric moisture. Altson repeated his experiments a
second time but did not obtain such conclusive results. He concluded that it would not be desirable

88 ALSTON, R. A. REPORT ON DEFECTIVE MANILA HEMP. 24 pp. South Kensington, England. 1922. (Imperial College.)
[in Manuscript. J

ABACA- -A CORDAGE FIBER

to test lower temperatures because the detection of changes would be difficult unless the experi-
ments were carried out over an unreasonably long period.

To explain the deterioration of abaca fiber due to biological action on samples on which no
spores were detected, Altson suggested that certain nonsporing species of bacteria might have
been present which were easily killed by thorough drying. Altson's work is of value in indicating
the changes that may be expected to occur in abaca fiber when it is subjected to high temperatures
for prolonged periods.

Serrano (165) found that abaca fiber is affected by heat, the effect being noticeable in color,
tensile strength, and stretch. Dried samples subjected to 120° C. showed no appreciable loss in
strength and stretch, but at 50 percent moisture the losses were marked.

Matthews (116) cites Dietz as having determined the specific heat of Manila hemp as 0. 322,
which is very similar to that of other vegetable fibers such as cotton, flax, and jute.

Standards of the National Board of Fire Underwriters for the "storage and handling of
combustible fibers, " September 1941, which presents information regarding the flammability or
combustibility of textile fibers, gives Manila hemp as highly combustible but not subject to
spontaneous heating and with a high salvage value.

Imperfect cleaning. --The association of greater amounts of pulp cells with the lower
qualities of abaca fiber is said to account for the more rapid deterioration of fiber of these grades
as compared to the higher grades which are freer from pulp cells. While various authors have
found to their satisfaction that the good grades of fiber contain practically no pulp cells or
parenchyma, in contrast to a high percentage of parenchyma in the lower grades, Altson89 found
as a result of an examination of many samples, that good and bad fibers alike contain parenchyma.
It is unfortunate that no one has determined by actual test the quantity of parenchyma cells
associated with fiber of different cleaning.

Theoretically the terms "excellent cleaning, " "good cleaning, " "coarse cleaning, " etc. ,
used in the trade are associated with different quantities of parenchyma cells adhering to the
fiber, but actually the quantities may vary little. As a matter of fact, the term "excellent
cleaning" may have greater significance in respect to the fineness of the fiber than to its purity.
This is pointed out because of the general belief that abaca men associate cleanness with the
presence of pulpy material and give less weight to fineness. Possibly in grading abaca the
reverse is true, for fineness is the major end factor in the degree of cleaning.

In practice purity of fiber is determined largely by observation or sight. To some extent
the association of fineness through feel and the sense of sight may also have some relation to
purity. This is due to the fact that in general fineness is correlated with purity and coarse
strands or ribbons of fiber are apt to have more encrustment and foreign material present. This
is apparent from the chemical analysis of fiber representing excellent, fair, and very coarse
cleaning, as shown in table 7. The purity of cellulose in fiber as represented by cellulosan is
much higher in samples of excellent cleaning than in samples of less perfect cleaning.

TABLE 7. — Chemical analysis of various grades of abaca fiber with different degrees of cleaning

Philippine Government grade

Cellu-
losan*

Xylan in
cellu-
lose

Total
furfural

Furfural
in poly-
uronides

Lignin

Protein

Ash

DL DAET Coarse (very coarse

A Extra Prime (excellent cleaning)

67.8
69.0
82.7

16.3
16.8
16.3

12.9
13.1
12.4

4.85
4.67
2.57

9.22

11.20

6.58

2.36
2.40
1.21

3.34
4.24
1.10

90 U. S. BUREAU OF PLANT INDUSTRY.
lished data, [n.d.]

DIVISION OF COTTON AND OTHER FIBER CROPS AND DISEASES. Unpub-

*Cellulosan = Cellulose + xylan in cellulose,

In an investigation (77) made at the Imperial Institute of certain samples of damaged abaca
(76),it was found that the quantities of ash which they yielded, varied from 3. 7 to 5. 1 percent,
while two commercial samples of good quality gave 1. 1 and 2. 4 percent, respectively. In this
connection, it is of interest to note that the Philippine Bureau of Science at Manila found that the
percentage of ash varies with the grade of the fiber in such a way as to render the determination

89 See Footnote 88.

261543 O - 54 - 6

U. S. DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE

of the ash an approximately accurate method of ascertaining the grade. 91 The percentages of
ash yielded by the various Government grades of abaca were reported as follows: A. Extra
Prime, 1. 14; B. Prime, 0. 62; C. Superior Current, 0. 99; D. Good Current, 1. 33; E. Midway,
0.81; F. Current, 1.93; SI. Streaky No. 1, 1.62; S2. Streaky No. 2, 2. 15; S3. Streaky No. 3,
1.31; G. Seconds, 2. 03; H. Brown, 2. 32; I. Good Fair, 2. 46; J. Fair, 3.00; K. Medium, 4.10;
L. Coarse, 4. 56; M. Coarse Brown, 3. 36; DM. Daet Coarse Brown, 2. 76.

These results would indicate that cleaning is a factor in the presence of different amounts
of ash in the fiber and that the higher quantities of ash show more adulteration of the relatively
pure cellulose of abaca fiber cells with foreign tissue high in ash.

Storage. --The influence of length of storage on deterioration of fiber is a subject about
which far too little is known. The general assumption has been that the annual loss of strength
of fiber stored under relatively dry conditions is about one percent a year. The data for abaca,
henequen, sansevieria, and abutilon shown in table 8 seem to support this belief.

TABLE 8. — Annual decrease in thousand pounds per square inch breaking strength of different

fibers stored under relatively dry conditions92

Fiber

Source of origin

Age
(years)

Breaking strength

Present
(1949)

Percent
total
loss*

Percent
annual
loss*

Abaca.

Henequen. . . .
Sansevieria.

Abutilon.

Not known

Philippines. . . .

Borneo

Mexico

East Africa. . . .
Florida, U.S.A.
Puerto Rico. . . .

Africa

Guadeloupe

Nicaragua

Florida, U.S.A.
Mexico

Cuba

Iowa, U.S. A

Delaware, U.S. A
Manchuria

Mexico

45
42
37
23
42
44
44
44
40
36
33
28
28
28
17
49
47
39
39
35
29
22

49.1
49.4
24.6
48.2
31.8
29.6
30.3
30.3
35.3
48.1
38.4
45.4
36.4
48.4
40.1
23.5
16.2
19.2
16.9
14.2

22.

18.

35.6
35.2
67.7
36.8
47.5
51.3
49.6
49.6
41.3
20.0
36.1
24.5
39.4
19.5
33.3
25.1
48.4
38.8
46.1
54.7
28.3
41.0

0.792

.839
1.831
1.601
1.131
1.165
1.127
1.127
1.032

.555
1.094

.874
1.409

.695
1.958

.513
1.030

.996
1.184

.565

.977
1.867

92 See Footnote No. 90.

^-Comparisons are with assumed original strengths based on many fresh samples tested in the
same laboratory by the same technique, i.e.: Abaca 76.3, henequen 60.6, sansevieria 60.1, and
abutilon (malvaceous) 31.4.

Sherman and Sherman (.169) found that abaca stored in a room in which the moisture content
of the fibers ranged from 9 to 1 1 percent showed losses in tensile strength after a 6-month period.
Sablan and Villaraza ( 1 54) , in a somewhat related study on the deterioration of abaca in storage,
found that abaca fiber with adhering pulp deteriorates faster than clean fiber. These results
were obtained from testing various grades of abaca as influenced by the degree of cleaning. Thus
the fiber graded excellent cleaning deteriorated in strength after 6 months 2. 17 percent, good
cleaning 4.41 percent, fair cleaning 6.78 percent, and coarse cleaning 18.07 percent.

91 Cordage World, Nov. 1921, p. 41.

ABACA- -A CORDAGE FIBER 77

TESTS FOR DETECTING DIFFERENT TYPES OF DEGRADATION

Miscellaneous tendering. --Castle and White (38) attempted to develop tests to differentiate
various types of deterioration. Quick laboratory treatments were used to bring about deterio-
ration from biological action, oxidation, heat, acids, pentosan removal, and delignification.
After exhausting several methods, Castle and White concentrated upon microscopic examination
of such tendered samples. They recommended the following procedure:

(1) Boil a few fiber strands in water, tease out with a needle, and boil for 1 minute in 5 percent
sodium carbonate solution. Rinse immediately in cold water and make three separate
mountings in zinc chloriodide. Then heat the slides on a steam bath for 3, 6, and 9 minutes
respectively, re-stain, and examine under the microscope, using polarized light.

(a) If bubble swelling is shown at any stage, then tendering by oxidation, heat, or alkalis is
indicated.

(b) Segmentation of the fibers as illustrated by the authors indicates acid tendering.

(c) If the fibers are stained a uniform bluish-purple color which does not change when the
polarizer is rotated, then it is clear that delignification has occurred.

(2) If bubble swelling has been observed in test (1) the test should be repeated in exactly the
same way as above except that the boil in sodium carbonate solution is omitted.

(a) If bubble swelling is still obtained the tendering has been due to removal of pentosans.

(b) If the appearance is now the same as that of normal fibers then the tendering must be
due to oxidation or heat.

(3) If the fiber appeared normal in the above tests it may be undamaged, or else tendered by the
action of micro-organisms. Cross sections are prepared and mounted in zinc chloriodide.
(a) Sections traversed by dark bands or irregular dark patches which do not disappear on
warming for 2 minutes indicates that biological attack may be suspected.

Fiber adulterants. --Frequently it is necessary to test abaca fiber to determine whether
degradation is due to a mixture of fibers of lesser value. The Textile World Record, September
1905, showed that abaca fiber could be distinguished from sisal by the color of the ash, the ash
of abaca being grayish black while that of sisal is white. Later, Swett ( 1 73) reported that
Manila fiber in rope and twine after being freed from oil and soaked for 20 seconds in a solution
of chloride of lime containing 5 percent of available chlorine, acidulated with acetic acid (30 cc.
of bleaching solution and 2 cc. of glacial acetic acid), rinsed in water, then in alcohol, and
finally exposed for a minute to the fumes of ammonia, would turn a russet brown while all other
rope fibers turned a cherry red.

As canton fiber may occasionally be mixed with abaca, because of the alleged practice of
performing this operation in the Philippine Islands where both fibers are common, it is important
to be able to distinguish the two. In identifying the fiber of canton the principal diagnostic charac-
ter is the pit (_3J. The pit, or unthickened portion of the cell wall looks under the microscope like
a hole through the wall. The pit of canton is almost parallel to the long axis of the cell, whereas
in most varieties of abaca the pits lie at a more or less sharp angle to the cells. Those varieties
of abaca whose pits lie almost parallel to the long dimensions of the cells may be distinguished
from canton by the dimensions of the cells, especially by the thickness of the wall and the size
and abundance of the stegmata. The stegmata, which are silicified cells, look like small bricks
with small circular excavations on one surface. Aldaba (3) found that canton fiber had abundant
stegmata cells, whereas the stegmata of abaca were scanty and sometimes it was necessary to
examine a number of samples before they were discovered. Aldaba (_3) reported also that when
a match was applied to single strands of abaca and canton fiber the canton burned more readily
than the abaca and with almost a white ash while abaca produced a darker ash.

Sherman ( 167), however, after rigid comparison of the ash color with color charts, stated
that the two fibers could not be differentiated by the ash test and that potassium chlorate solution
would not produce distinguishing color differences between canton, abaca, and maguey. Sherman
did find that canton was weaker than abaca, less elastic, contained a higher natural acidity,
higher ash content, and a greater "mercerization curl" with 20 percent NaOH.

Excellent summaries of microscopic and staining methods for use in identifying abaca and
other common fibers are found in "Microscopic Methods Used in Identifying Commercial Fibers"
by Thora M. Pli'tt, Circular C. 423, U.S. Department of Commerce 1939, and "Identification of
Fibers," Journal of the Textile Institute, Vol. 32, June 1941.

It w'ould appear from the literature cited above that an anatomical study of abaca for pit and
stegmata cells plus the "mercerization curl" are the most reliable means of differentiating canton
from abaca. Unfortunately, the tests are slow and require some experience on the part of the
technician.

Billinghame (24) described an "Amoa" test for the detection of sisal when mixed with manila
fiber. He stated that phormium, Mauritius, and maguey can also be distinguished from manila

78 U. S. DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE

by this test. In the Amoa test the fiber sample is steeped from 5 to 10 minutes in a boiling 5-
percent solution of HN03, rinsed in water, and then placed in a cold solution of 1 part of 52°
Tw NaOCl and 3 parts of water for 10 minutes. Abaca fiber after drying "regardless of origin"
colors bright orange-red, whereas sisal, phormium, Mauritius, and maguey fibers color pale
yellow.

PHYSICAL CHARACTERISTICS

Since abaca fiber is valued mainly for industrial use, such physical characters as luster,
color, smoothness, etc. , are of less importance than they would be in a textile clothing fiber.
The first physical properties that enter into the judgment of abaca fiber are those used in grading
the raw material in the area of production. These in order of decreasing importance are (1)
degree of cleaning or purity of the fiber; (2) color; (3) uniformity; and (4) strength. Indirectly
the degree of cleaning influences the fineness of the fiber, as previously noted, since the higher
grades, which are obtained from excellent cleaning, represent finer fiber than that obtained
from coarse cleaning. Of all the other physical characters, only length is considered, and
length is of minor importance since the fibers must be above a definite specified length to be
classified as cordage grades.

Where hand stripping or the spindle machine is used, these cordage properties in the order
given should be considered in the field or in the stripping shed preliminary to Government inspec-
tion. The fiber stripper busy at his job of turning out fiber cannot concern himself with testing
fiber from different hand lots for strength, but factors that he can easily and quickly control are
the type of knife and its influence on the degree of cleaning; the segregation of hand lots into
different colors; the segregation of unusually short, tangled or off -color lots to insure uniformity
and, finally, the elimination of weak or damaged material.

Differences in chemical or physical properties may make one fiber more valuable than
another. In practice many factors influence the properties of a fiber, such as the amount of
foreign matter or encrustants which are present on it, the batching fluids or sizing which are
added in the manufacturing process, as well as the structural changes that take place as it is
manufactured into yarns and fabrics. For the present, however, we are concerned primarily
with the properties of the individual raw fibers. There are a tremendous number of physical
properties that may in one way or another influence the value of a particular fiber for a particular
use. No one fiber has all the good characters of the others and hence it may not be utilized to
advantage over other fibers for all uses. In some cases what is considered a poor physical
property in a fiber may actually be an advantage for a special use. Jute might be cited as an
example. Strength in fibers and yarns is recognized as one of their most valuable properties,
yet the basic weakness of jute has given it preference over stronger fibers for use by the Post
Office Department as a twine for tying letters. The twine employed by the Post Office must be
of such diameter and weight that it will not cut through the envelopes when used in tying, and yet
will be of such low strength that an employee can break it with his hands. Cotton twines of the
same diameter and weight would be too strong to serve the purpose. Thus it may be seen, as
a selected illustration, that here is a fiber whose weakness is actually an asset in reference to
its utilization.

While the number of physical properties of a fiber is large, including among the more
important purity, length, fineness, elasticity, breaking strength, pliability, luster, molecular
structure and orientation, tenacity, ductility, absorbency, hygroscopicity, resiliency, combusti-
bility, etc. , it is an unfortunate fact that many of the fibers have not been adequately studied and
compared in reference to some of their more important properties. One has only to visit a group
of textile mills to realize how inadequate some are in their methods of testing to determine
differences in performance of various varieties, grades, or types of the fiber or fibers that they
manufacture.

Although cordage fibers in the raw or in manufactured form do not normally command as
high a price as textile fibers and their fabrics, it is just as important that their physical properties
be studied and known. Moreover, cordage fibers may require testing in respect to a number of
physical properties that are unimportant in fabrics. For example, it is important to know the
buoyancy of a manila rope as compared to that of sisal, coir, or hemp. Perhaps it might be
asked how important a knowledge of the physical properties of a particular fiber would be to a
manufacturer whose machinery limits his business to the preparation of certain types of fibers.
For all practical purposes, one might visualize that a manufacturer could only use the relatively
few fibers of which supplies are available, namely, abaca, sisal, henequen, hemp, flax, and
cotton. From past experience a manufacturer of binder twine knows well that only hard fibers
such as abaca, sisal, and henequen are available in quantities which are particularly applicable
to his type of spinning machinery and are wanted by the trade. His economy and efficiency of

ABACA- -A CORDAGE FIBER 79

operation further narrow him down to the fact that henequen is normally the cheapest fiber avail-
able that has satisfactorily served his requirements and hence is the fiber that he must use. How-
ever, such a manufacturer having decided upon the use of henequen for the production of binder
twine, may be confronted with many problems in connection with its physical properties or its
manufacturing construction such as twist per inch, fineness, quality, color, length, and strength
as influenced by grade, and whether or not a cheap grade of sisal would be better for his purpose
than a medium grade of henequen.

Purity. --Stem and leaf fibers in the raw state as prepared in most agricultural industries
contain relatively large percentages of encrustant materials. These are the remnants of cells
(parenchyma) and their cell-wall structures which have surrounded the thicker wall fiber cells
(sclerenchyma) and have not been entirely removed in the cleaning process. In addition to the
encrustants that are present on abaca, sisal, flax, hemp, and jute, there are frequently small
pieces of wood, called "shives" in flax and "hurds" in hemp, that have not been removed in
cleaning because they became entangled with the fiber. These encrustants, plant parts, and
foreign material influence the grade and the manufacturer's choice of a grade as well as the cost
of manufacturing the fiber into the final product. Over a period of years cleanliness or purity of
the fiber, not so much in reference to encrustants as to the other foreign material mentioned
above, has been the manufacturer's first concern in selecting fiber of certain plant species.

Purity determines the grade of abaca. The Philippine abaca fiber is grouped into different
classes each of which contains several grades. The groupings are ranked according to the degree
of cleaning as excellent, good, fair, coarse, and very coarse cleaning. High purity with sisal,
henequen, and abaca to some extent is taken for granted as the physical classification of the fiber
partly eliminates its being a factor that registers in observation. However, in tow grades of these
fibers, purity becomes more important. The analyses of fiber of several grades with different
degrees of cleaning, presented in table 7, show large differences between grades. Especially
noteworthy is the higher content of noncellulose constituents in the fiber of poorer cleaning.

Color. --As previously explained, in the field with hand stripping or in the smaller machine-
cleaning establishments of the Philippines the first grading is mainly a visual one involving the
separation of fiber on the basis of cleaning, color, uniformity, and strength, in that order. The
next step is performed by inspectors of the Fiber Standardization Board where the relative
importance of .these characters may be changed. Strength, for example, may play a more impor-
tant part in the classification of a lot of fiber when it is compared with lots from other sources
of production, and the color of an individual lot may be uniform within itself but in comparison
with other lots differences may be observable.

The work of the Fiber Standardization Board is still based on hand testing combined with
visual examination. A more scientific approach to the determination of color is the spectral
reflectance test developed by Becker (21) and Becker and Appel (22). By this test it is possible
to determine, quantitatively the color value of fiber of the different standard Philippine grades of
abaca and also to evaluate the color of abaca rope. As this measurement, known as the "Becker
value, " has been adopted in the United States Federal Specifications for Manila rope, it deserves
attention here. Fibers are cut into lengths of 1. 5 to 2. 5 mm. , mixed, and an 8-gm. portion is
extracted in a Soxhlet apparatus for 2 hours with petroleum ether. The extracted fibers are
spread on clean filter paper, dried over night and the spectral reflectance and the colorimetric
measurements of the fiber are determined in certain specified ways on the following day.

Although, strictly speaking, the Becker test is not a measure of color, it does give a value
that is related to the color characteristic which is one of the principal elements in the grading of
abaca rope fiber.

The average values for abaca fiber of different grades recorded by Becker (21) for the
spectral reflectance of wave length 500 mu follow: AB, 59.3; CD, 54.9; E, 49.9; F, 46.5; S2,
45.4; S3, 33. 5; I, 42.5;J1, 40.0; G, 31.3; and H, 21.5. There was overlapping in the measure-
ments for some of the different fiber grades.

The minimum values for rope for Government purchase are:

43 for rope 1/2 to 2 inches in nominal circumference, inclusive;
40 for rope 2- 1/4" inches and above. 93

Becker stated that her results indicated the possibility of using such measures as quantita-
tive spectral reflectance to supplement, if not to replace, the present method of grading abaca for
color. To the authors it would appear that the Becker test is one requiring judgment in the manip-
ulation of technique in preparing the samples as well as a long time element which are factors
that cannot be adapted to the quick visual inspection necessary in the trade to insure economy.

93 U. S. GENERAL SERVICES ADMINISTRATION. FEDERAL STANDARD STOCK CATALOG. Section IV (Pt. 5). Federal
specification for rope: Manila. T-R-601a. Nov. 26, 1935, and T-R-601a Amend.-2. Dec. 10, 1943.

U. S. DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE

Uniformity. --The subject of uniformity in abaca has received little attention from scientists
engaged in research on abaca fiber. Possibly the term as used in grading abaca in the field or by
Government standards is too general, covering as it does uniformity of color, length of fiber,
cleanness, fineness, strength, and other important characters. As these characters are not
weighted against each other in any measurable degree, it is not hard to understand why uniformity
as a whole has received so little study.

With abaca uniformity in grading is important to the spinner, for it affects both the efficiency
and the quality of performance. The importance which he attaches to this character is reflected
in the fact that he hesitates to pay a high price for fiber from new areas where standardization
methods are poor and variations may be expected to occur.

Variations in abaca grading are defined in different grade descriptions by degrees of toler-
ance as based upon trade customs and understandings rather than by specific measurements, as,
for example, the statements that if the "fiber is impaired in any way, the fiber shall be graded
as 'damaged'; 'Good cleaning' denotes fiber some filaments of which may be stuck together and
to which some moderate amount of extraneous pulpy material may adhere"; and "normally possess
a good sheen or luster. . . will have noticeably less sheen than the fiber included in the first three
grades. . . "

These examples taken from Standard Grades of Central American abaca illustrate the un-
specific modifying adjectives. However, in practice they are well understood and create a mini-
mum of arbitration.

Strength. --Strength is the most sought after of all physical properties in abaca because the
end use of this fiber is in articles in which strength is the prime requisite. Strength is a basic
quality in abaca, for fiber that is below average strength will be thrown out of any of the established
standards and graded as "damaged" irrespective of coloring or cleaning.

Kaswell and Piatt9* in 1949 published the results of a well-planned study to determine the
basic mechanical properties of abaca, sisal, henequen, and sansevieria. The results on strength
and elongation follow:

Fiber

Abaca ,

Sisal ,

Henequen
Sansevieria.

Strength

Gms/den ier
7.0
4.4
3.3

4.5

Coefficient of
variation

Percent

21
21
20
25

Elongation

Coeff. of

Percent

var iat ion

2.78

2.72

4.77

2.70

Table 9 presents a summary of several important studies on the subject of strength in cordage
fibers. The table does not show data obtained by similar methods, but it does show that by
different methods and with different samples abaca displays extraordinary strength as compared
with other fibers. In order of decreasing strength the fibers rank in general as follows: Abaca,
sisal, phormium, henequen, cabuya, jute, and ambari.

Physical chemists have shown that fibers are made up of chained molecules. This structure
is often compared to a string of beads. These beads may be in crystalline form or in an amorphous
form, or the two may be somewhat intermixed. The strength of the fiber is correlated with the
orientation of the chained molecules. In ramie and flax the chain and crystalline molecules are
more parallel to the fiber axis, and fibers with this structure possess great strength. In other
fibers like cotton the molecules are rather more in the form of a spiral, are less perfectly
crystallized, and are in a more amorphous form. Such fibers are weaker. Berkley (23) found
from a study of X-ray detraction patterns in cross sections of abaca fibers taken from different
parts of the leaf sheath that the cellulose molecular chain of fibers from the outer or dorsal region
of the leaf sheath showed a higher order of structure than that from the central or the inner or
ventral region of the sheath. This is important because of the different methods used in extracting
abaca fiber. When the leaf sheaths are "tuxied" and cleaned by hand or by hagotan machine the
fiber is extracted only from the outer or dorsal region of the leaf sheath, but when the large semi-
automatic decorticators of the Corona type are used, the entire leaf sheath is transported to the

94 KASWELL, E. R., and PLATT, M. M. INVESTIGATION OF THE MECHANICAL PROPERTIES OF HARD FIBERS WITH
REFERENCE TO THEIR USE IN CORDAGE STRUCTURES. U. S. Off. Naval Res., Contract No. N7 ONR 421. Tech. Report 3,
36 pp. Jan. 1, 1949. [Unpublished.]

ABACA--A CORDAGE FIBER

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82 U. S. DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE

machine for fiber extraction. In the latter case the fiber is made up of the vascular bundles
from the dorsal as well as the ventral side of the leaf sheath. This fact might indicate that fiber
cleaned on the large decorticators would be weaker than that cleaned by the hagotan method. In
practice, however, other factors influence cleaning and little difference of practical importance
has been found between the strength of fiber cleaned by one method and that cleaned by another.

FACTORS CAUSING VARIATIONS IN TENSILE STRENGTH

In addition to the variations in the tensile strength of abaca fiber resulting from deterioration
caused by various agents and methods of cleaning and handling, there are other factors of suffi-
cient importance to be worthy of discussing. These are more or less hereditary factors such as
variety and location of the fiber in the plant and factors of an environmental nature such as
locality of growth.

Fiber from different leaf sheaths of one stalk. --Tirona ( 177) found wide variability in fiber
strength within the same variety and plant sheath location. Variability increased from the outer
to the middle to the inner leaf sheaths.

Espino (62) reported that the fibers from the inner sheaths are finer and weaker and better
adapted to textile use than those from outer sheaths, which produce a coarse, strong, and often
discolored fiber suitable for cordage. The intermediate sheaths give the strongest fibers.
Espino. states that this is probably so because the excessive amount of stegmata in the fiber from
the outside sheaths makes the fiber brittle and the lack of well-developed walls in the cells of the
innermost sheaths makes the fiber weak. Another point shown by Espino that is of more academic
interest than of practical importance is the fact that the fiber in the outer edges of a sheath are
stronger per unit of weight than those from the middle part of the same sheath. Espino's results
are shown in table 10.

Berkley and co-workers ( 23) concluded from tests of abaca fiber samples collected in
different Central American countries that fiber strength is greatest in the streaky sheaths (near
outer sheaths), somewhat less in the outer brown sheaths and the ocher or cream-colored sheaths
just beneath the streaky, and least in the white fiber near the center of the plant.

It can be concluded from these separate investigations which yield almost identical results
that the younger, immature fiber cells of the inner sheaths have weaker fiber than the older,
more mature fiber cells of the outer sheaths.

Fiber from different heights in the stalk. --The fiber cells in the upper tip of an abaca leaf
sheath are older than those in the base of the same leaf sheath at the ground level. Since it has
been shown that the younger cells of various fiber plants are weaker than the older cells, it would
be expected that the weakest fiber in abaca would be that from the lower base section of the leaf
sheaths. To determine the correctness of this assumption, Berkley and co-workers (23) studied
the strength of samples of fibers of different varieties from four Central American countries
taken at different heights in the plant. They concluded: "The fiber properties vary with height
in plant for both varieties [Maguindanao and Bungulanon]. Tall plants grown in deep shade show
little difference in fiber properties up through the first 10 feet, but near the top the fiber strength,
flex life, and resistance to abrasion decline. Short, stunted plants grown in inadequate shade
show a marked reduction in physical properties with height in the plant above the first 4 or 5
feet ... In short plants the first 6-foot section, going up from the base, may be as much as 20 to
30' percent higher in fiber strength, flex life, and resistance to abrasion than the second section
or top. " In Berkley's work the basal samples were taken from a 4- to 6-foot section, and the
fiber tested was from near the middle of the 4- to 6-foot section, and no tests were made on the
fiber much closer than 2 feet from the base of the plant. This might indicate that he missed
testing the most immature part at the base of the sheath. Further, it might indicate that the
abaca fiber matures rather quickly to attain its greatest strength and that fiber cells a short
distance up the stalk have already reached their maximum strength. The low strength in the
tips is harder to explain.

In an attempt to obtain additional information on this subject, fiber taken from a full length
stalk of 12 feet was specially cut close to the ground, cleaned, and sent to the United States
Department of Agriculture for further tests. The results are shown in table 11. These results
indicate minor weakness in the basal section and more marked weakness in the tip sections. The
weakness in section 3 cannot be explained.

Fiber from different varieties. --Varietal tests usually include comparisons of yield, resist-
ance to disease, degree of suckering, longevity, etc. , but little work appears to have been done
on the relative fiber strength of different varieties. Hereditary variations in the strength of fiber
of different varieties have been found in cotton and flax and may be expected to occur in abaca.
They are characters that the abaca breeder should constantly keep in mind in any improvement
program.

ABACA- -A CORDAGE FIBER 83

TABLE 10. — Strength and the stretching of fibers obtained from different leaf sheaths of one

trunk

Edges

Middle

portion

Sheath

Stretch-

Breaking

Weight
of

Strength
calculated

Stretch-

Breaking

Weight
of

Strength
calculated

ing

weight

sample

to gm. basis

ing

weight

sample

to gm. basis

Mm.

Gm .

Gm.

Kgm.

Mm .

Gm.

Kgm.

6,256

0.12

52.133

11.5

7,416

0.14987

49.483

6,367

.1209

52.704

7,767

.1503

51.676

6,367

.12022

52.663

8,515

.1702

50.029

6,442

.11986

53.737

8,617

.1697

51.367

12.5

6,487

.1102

58.865

10,667

.2000

53.365

7,972

.15

53.147

9,547

.16974

56.245

8.5

5,367

.11032

48.649

9,399

.1804

52.100

11.5

8,405

.15

56.033

14.5

11,477

.1800

63.781

7,964

.13

61.261

13.5

11, 055

.19572

56.483

9,777

.15086

64.801

12.5

10, 769

.21026

51.168

6,859

.13072

52.470

8,616

.19032

45.271

6,388

. 12054

52.994

8.5

7,114

.15078

47.247

8.5

6,238

.11088

56.259

7,642

.1704

44.847

6,488

.11068

58.619

10.5

7,103

.16036

44.292

6,762

.1498

45.147

6,864

.15034

45.656

3,987

.0804

48.345

5,496

.13672

40.198

3,655

.0807

45.266

4,305

.12044

35.743

1,891

.04062

46.555

7.5

3,558

. 10843

32.813

Average

53.313

48.431

TABLE 11. — Strength of abaca fiber in thousands of pounds per square inch as influenced by verti-
cal location in the stalk

Means

Type of fiber

Base
section

higher

section

Section
3

Section
4

Section
5

Tip

section

Mean

58.8
53.9
56.4

69.1
58.4
63.8

57.6
57.8
57.7

65.5
60.8
63.1

57.0
58.7
57.8

51.6
48.0
49.8

59.9

Both*

56.3
58.1

^Statistically a difference of 3.9 thousands of pounds for results under "Both" is significant.

Berkley and co-workers (23) found from comparisons of fiber samples of abaca grown in
four Central American countries that the fiber strength of Bungulanon was significantly greater
than that of Maguindanao wherever the two varieties were grown. These varieties are the two
most commonly grown in Central America, and the results in some instances showed differences
as large as 15 percent.

Espino and Esguerra (64) and Espino and Reyes (66) reported on comparative strength of
fibers from different varieties when grown side by side under Los Banos conditions of soil and
climate. They state, "as was to be expected on account of the extraordinary thickness of the walls
and narrow lumina of the fiber-elements in the Bongulanon, this variety of all the varieties tested,
produced the strongest fibers. " These tests involved the weight required to break five average-
sized fibers 50 centimeters in length, but when the breaking load was computed to a one -gram
sample of 50 centimeters length, the ranking of the varieties was: Sinaba, 100; Punucan, 99;
Itom, 97; Libuton, 96; Ilayas, 94; Maguindanao, 93; Bongulanon, 87; Samoro puti, 86; Pinoonan,
79; Bulao, 75; Agogaron, 74; and Kalado, 71. These results indicate that Bongulanon, a popular
variety, is midway in strength due to its coarseness. Actually it had the thickest cell walls and

U. S. DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE

Balao, the thinnest. The authors concluded that although the coarseness of the fibers and the
thickness of the cell walls are largely responsible for the strength of the fibers, yet the data
seemed to show that fibers of certain varieties are naturally either strong or weak irrespective
of these qualities.

While many morphological and physiological characters of a plant influence the strength
of its fiber, the work discussed above shows that hereditary differences in varieties also influ-
ence fiber strength. This being true, it should be possible through selective breeding to take
advantage of varietal differences in fiber strength and create a new variety with greater strength
than any of the common varieties existing today.

Fiber of different grades. --Table 12, obtained through the courtesy of the Philippine
Department of Agriculture, shows the average breaking strength in grams per gram meter length
of fiber of different grades of abaca. Somewhat similar data were published in the Philippine
Agricultural Review (92, 154). It is evident from table 12 that the coarser and lower grades of
abaca fiber are weaker than the grades of good cleaning, and that the streaky grades, which are
obtained mainly from the outer leaf sheaths and hence represent the oldest fiber in each leaf
stalk, contain the strongest fiber. These results were also confirmed by the studies of Berkley
and associates ( 23) on fiber collected in Central America. It is possible that the coarse grades
with low strength as presented in the table do not in reality always measure the full strength of
the fiber. Strength was determined on the basis of weight per gram meter; hence the coarse
grades, containing greater amounts of pulp and other encrustants, would naturally test out weaker
The percentage stretch of the fiber, averaging approximately 2. 5, is what one would expect from
a knowledge of other vegetable fibers, being similar in this respect to flax, hemp, and jute.
There is little evidence of any correlation of stretch with strength and grade designation.

Bishop and Curtler (25), in a report on the fiber strength of abaca from North Borneo,
carried out by the Department of Agriculture of the Federated Malay States, also found that fiber
of the low standard grades lacked the strength of fiber of the higher grades.

The foregoing results indicate clearly why commercial cordage manufacturers are willing
to pay the small premium that the higher standard grades normally command.

TABLE 12. — Average breaking strength (per gram meter) and percentage strength of Philippine abaca

fiber of different grades96

Grade and description

Breaking strength
( grams )

Percentage stretch

A Extra Prime ,

B Prime

C Superior Current.

D Good Current

E Midway

51 Streaky No. 1

52 Streaky No. 2

S3, Streaky No. 3

F Current

G Seconds.

H Brown

I Good Fair

Jl Fair No. 1

J2 Fair No. 2

K Medium

LI Coarse

Ml Coarse Brown

DL Daet Coarse

DM Daet C. Brown

50
51
52
53
51
53
54
55
48
47
48
46
42
44
40
40
37
39
38
36
35

,419
,369
,232
,675
,815
,818
,391
,809
,902
,980
,658
,646
,787
,213
,730
,226
,884
,711
,189
,523
,209

2.62
2.60
2.42
2.39
2.30
2.60
2.67
2.87
2.65
2.72
2.68
2.79
2.59
2.46
.52
.85
.69
.57

2.52
2.39
3.01

Data furnished by Vicente C. Aldaba, Philippine Islands, Bureau of Plant Industry. 1935.

ABACA--A CORDAGE FIBER

Fiber from plants of different ages. --The Fiber Division of the Philippine Bureau of Agri-
culture has supplied results on the breaking strength of abaca fiber obtained from plants of
different ages. These results are given in table 13.

TABLE 13. — Tensile strength of abaca fiber obtained from plants (Sinibuyas variety) of different

ages, from Cavite, P.I.97

Plants

Breaking strain per gram meter

Highest

Lowest

Average

3 months old ,

6 months old ,

1 year old ,

2 years old, flower comes out ,

Flower opens ,

Fruit well formed ,

Matured stalk with fruit ripe ,

Over-matured stalk with all leaves and fruit dried,

Grams
59, 090
68,252
60,901
64,287
63,636
61,190
67, 741
70, 886

Grams
33, 149
39, 333
43, 068
48,510
50,438
51,014
41, 071
33.088

Grams

42, 471
50, 897
54,544
55,303
56, 874
55,025
58, 832
56,247

97 Philippine Islands. Bureau of Plant Industry. Fiber Research Division.

The results in table 13 show that the strength of the fiber increases as the plants grow
older even up to and past the time of flowering. These results conform to what would be expected
from the fact that the fiber cells become thicker-walled and stronger with age. The degree of
increased strength is important as well as the rate of increase. These results if they may be
taken to illustrate what can be expected in general indicate that at the early age of six months
the fiber has approximately 85 percent of its ultimate strength. Plants one year old and immature
as far as flowering is concerned have strong fiber. Possibly the total yield of fiber per plant is
not at its maximum in one-year-old plants, so from the economic standpoint it would undoubtedly
be advisable to let the harvest go longer. Even the old plants with dried leaves and fruit have
strong fiber and should be harvested when practices have not made it possible to do so earlier.

TENSILE STRENGTH OF HAND-CLEANED FIBER VERSUS MACHINE -CLEANED

Berkley and co-workers ( 23) were not able to show from samples collected in Central
America significant differences in the strength of abaca fibers cleaned by the hagotan method
and those cleaned by the large semiautomatic Corona type machines. They stated that the
hagotan- stripped fiber was coarser and stronger but that its superior structure and lack of
mechanical cleaning injuries could account for the greater strength of the hagotan-stripped
product. Somewhat similar results were obtained from the Furukawa Development Company,
Davao, P. I. , in 1926. These results, as reported by Sherman, follow.

Cleaning method

Maguindanao

Tangongon

Bungulanon

Average

53,979
56,120

53,657
56,814

57,565
56,350

55,067

56,428

Bacon (17), attempting to learn if the strength of fiber cleaned by the hagotan or spindle
machine was as strong as that cleaned by hand, found an increase in strength of 64 to 130 per-
cent in favor of the machine -cleaned fiber. These results were obtained even when leaf sheaths
were split in half and one -half was cleaned by machine and the other by hand. Bacon explained
the greater strength of the machine-cleaned fiber by saying that the steady pull of the fiber under
the knife of the machine resulted in fewer broken fibers than the intermittent jerky pulls of an
operator cleaning by hand.

98 SHERMAN, P. L. Correspondence. November 1926.

U. S. DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE

It must be remembered, however, that lack of attention to the adjustment of machine
cleaning knives and insufficient clearance in the large semiautomatic machine can result in
damage to the fiber, as shown by Berkley and co-workers (fig. 28). Nevertheless, it is a
matter of interest and importance in an age of machine development to know that machine clean-
ing does preserve the natural strength of the fiber.

TENSILE STRENGTH OF ABACA FROM DIFFERENT REGIONS OF PRODUCTION

Because of the various interrelated factors that influence the strength of a fiber, such as
soil, climate, variety, and methods of production it is hardly possible to attribute to any one
factor the differences observed in fiber strength. However, it is possible by testing fibers
originating in different areas to learn whether abaca from one area is stronger than that from
another.

Berkley and co-workers (23) found significant statistical differences between abaca fiber
grown in different Central American countries, but because of unavoidable delays in making
their tests, they attached little importance to the results. From comparisons of Central
American with Philippine abaca, they found that the samples of prewar Philippine fiber produced
before 1942 were on the average stronger than those of postwar 1945 Central American fiber.
The strength of Philippine postwar fiber was equal to that of Central American, indicating either
the variability that exists between seasons or a deterioration of the Philippine product.

In the trade, Sumatra abaca is generally considered weaker than the Philippine product.
There are few published data to support this belief, but the results of tests conducted by the
Fiber Research Division of the Philippine Bureau of Plant Industry, shown as table 14, seem to
substantiate it.

TABLE 14. — Tensile strength tests of Philippine and Sumatra abaca
[Average breaking strength of more than 50 tests]99

Philippine abaca

Sumatra abaca

Grade

Gram meter Stretch

Grade

Gram meter Stretch

E and F ,

F and I

51 'and S2 ,

52 and S3 ,

SI and S3 ,

E,F,S1,S2 and S3.
F,I,S2, and S3...

,656

j'r ams~
50,6^
52,585
48,122
48,541
52,363
52,847
55,683
44,334
51,620
50,353
52,605
54,265
54,023
52,826
52,309

r cent

2.21
3.24
3.80
3.50
3.19
3.32
3.20
2.85

Superior,
Good

Medium. . .

Superior.
Good

Medium. . .

Grams

46,147
46,906

45,584

46,147
46,906

45,584

Per cen t

1.82
1.64

1.52

1.82
1.64

1.52

99 Data from Eladio Sablan, Assistant Agronomist, Philippine Islands, Bureau of Plant Industry,
Fiber Division. Nov. 15, 1930.

Ynchausti y Cia. , in 1931J1-00 reported on breaking tests of rope yarns made of Sumatra
and Philippine hand-cleaned and Deco fiber and stated that the Philippine was superior.

From these and other tests it is concluded that Sumatra abaca made into yarn lacks the
strength and elasticityj as well as the luster of Philippine abaca.

KNOT STRENGTH

The test for knot strength is a type of shearing test. In such a test the internal force is
tangential to the section on which it acts. It will be influenced by various factors, but for

100 YNCHAUSTI Y CIA. REPORT. 4 pp. Manila. 1931. [Unpublished.]

ABACA- -A CORDAGE FIBER

Figure 28---A, Abaca fiber of excellent cleaning. This fiber possesses a uniform degree of fineness, freedom from
pulp, and undamaged strength. B, Machine-damaged fiber. C, Enlargement of one of the injured spots shown in B.

U. S. DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE

purposes of discussion here only the type of knot or degree of angle that the material is distorted
ana the fineness of the filaments making up the test sample are considered.

The results of Heim and Roehrich in columns 2 and 3 of table 9 show the great decrease in
strength that occurs in a shear or knot test. It has generally been thought that hard fibers
(coarser leaf fibers) suffer more in such a test than soft fibers (finer stem fibers), but while
abaca and sisal do show considerable reduction in strength as compared to hemp and flax, this
relation does not hold for all soft fibers. For example, ambari (Hibiscus cannabinus), paka
(Urena lobata), and jute (Corchorus spp.), all soft fiber s , show a very marked reduction in
strength in the knot test.

Unpublished data of the United States Department of Agriculture presented in table 9 further
substantiate reductions in strength due to knotting. In these tests, performed on small strands
or fine yarns of fibers in bundles, the fibers were subjected to a much more severe treatment
than they would actually encounter in commercial practices. Big ropes or cables could not be
knotted or kinked in such a way as to create as severe torsional strains on individual fiber strands
as would result from knotting a fine yarn. Hence it is believed that the knot strength tests in
yarns is too severe a test by which to judge alone the ranking of fibers used in big cables. Un-
fortunately there are few or no data available on knotting ropes to prove that the loss in strength
is proportionately less than in fine yarn samples. Such data as are available, however, indicate
that for tying twine of small diameter- -several hundred feet per pound-- the soft fibers of good
quality, even jute, would be as strong as or stronger in the knot than the hard fibers.

The Boston Navy Yard reported a test 101to show the effect of abrasion resistance of abaca
on different size pulleys with consequent different lengths of abraded surface. While additional
factors other than knots enter into this test it is presented to indicate that yarns twisted over
small pulleys with great angles of torsion but a smaller surface for abrasion have less resistance
to the abrasion than yarns twisted over wide angles and abraded over a longer surface. The
torsional and abrasional effects on sharper angles as might be experienced in knots of different
sizes is illustrated by these data in table 14a.

TABLE 14a. — Resistance to failure of abaca yarns abraded over different lengths as influenced

by greater torsional angles

Abaca yarns

Average turn per foot.
Breaking strength, lbs
Size, feet per lb.....

11.9
438
214

11.9
343
302

12.2
300
347

12.2
228
460

Revolutions to failure

Tension weight 20-3/4 lbs.

1-3/4" length abraded ,

5-3/8" length abraded ,

10-7/8" length abraded

Tension weight 15-9/16 lbs,

1-3/4" length abraded ,

5-3/8" length abraded ,

10-7/8" length abraded

Tension weight 7-3/4 lbs.

1-3/4" length abraded ,

5-3/8" length abraded ,

10-7/8" length abraded

456
438
432

460
395

480

508
482
509

101 U. S. NAVY DEPARTMENT. ABRASION RESISTANCE TESTS ON MANILA YARNS. Sept. 6, 1944. (Navy Yard, Boston.
Materials Lab. Report 8821. 2nd Prog. Report.) [Unpublished.]

ABACA- -A CORDAGE FIBER

It must be emphasized that the soft tying twines used in the comparisons referred to in
table 9 were high-quality line grades. As a rule in the soft fiber trade the higher qualities of
flax, ramie, and jute are used only for highly valued threads and fabrics and the lower qualities,
either weak or tows, are used in low-priced tying twine.

The strength of sansevieria as compared with that of abaca is disappointing (table 9). This
is true not only of the breaking strength but even more of the knot strength. As sansevieria is a
very fine fiber it might be expected to have reasonably good knot strength. The reduction in
strength of sansevieria from 51. 2 to 12. 4 (75. 7 percent) thousand pounds per square inch is com-
parable to that of abaca, 76. 3 to 17. 9 (76. 5 percent), on a percentage basis. It is possible that
unfavorable cultural, environmental, or processing conditions may account for the low knot
strength of the fiber from these Florida-grown sansevieria plants.

ABRASION AND FLEX

In cordage use the properties of abrasion and flex rank high. Heavy ropes and cables,
which are made mainly of hard fibers, are normally stiff and permit little flexing as compared
with the soft fibers used in twines or fabrics. Yet the use of ropes in pulley blocks necessitates
some degree of flexing and the use of cables in refueling at sea and the "snake-like" lashing of
boats side by side in refueling or transfer of cargoes in one form or another create abrasion on
the ropes that may significantly alter their useful life.

How to measure abrasion and flexing and the relative degree of these characters exhibited
by one fiber over another is still an unstandardized procedure. Johnson and Stephenson ( 100)
(101) flexed 18 samples of 2-1/4 inch circumference abaca rope of different grades and found the
quality of the rope in relation to the grade of fiber could not be determined from the results.
They believed that variations in the rope as yarn twist (10%), lay, oil content (100%), yarn size
(40%), etc. , affected the results. Results of tests conducted at the Boston Navy Yard and made
available through the courtesy of the United States Department of the Navy are presented below.

TABLE 14b. — Abrasion revolutions — 77 per minute — to failure
on yarns of 300 feet per pound

Load

Abaca

Sis

Percent

Number

250
1,050
1,550
2,350

Num

ber

400

800

1 500

3 000

4 300

TABLE 14c. — Flexing durability of abaca and sisal — 90 oscillations per hour

Rope size

Sheave dimensions

Load

Length in
contact with
sheaves

Oscillations to failure

Circ.

Diam.

Width

Abaca

Sisal

Inche s

Inches

2-13/16
2-13/16
4-3/4
6-3/8

Inches

3/4

1-1/4

1-3/4

Pounds

452

1,730

2,930

Inches

18
18
36
36

Number
5,677
4,193
3,765
3,446

Number

8,895

11, 915

3,210

3,222

The data on abrasion here recorded show that sisal, though recognized as lower in strength
than abaca, surpasses it in resistance to breakage under abrasion. Results obtained by Schiefer
( 170) in tests with different fibers confirm this finding. In Schiefer's tests strands of fiber were
twisted, one twist per inch of length for testing. This represented to some degree a manufactured
yarn and eliminated any noticeable lack of tension on some fiber strands that would have been
difficult to avoid in testing hard fibers if they had not been twisted. Schiefer pointed out that one
outstanding result of his abrasion tests was the profound effect that the direction of the twist,

90 U. S. DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE

SS and SZ--that is, an S twist in the bundle of fibers and an S or Z twist in the ply of two bundles--
had on the resistance to abrasion of the fibers. In general the resistance to abrasion for the SZ
twist was much greater than for the SS twist. The amount of twist in the bundle and in the ply and
the addition of lubricants also affect the resistance to abrasion. Schiefer found that the resistance
of the fibers to abrasion in descending order was henequen- - sisal - -abaca.

With essentially the same methoas, Berkley and associates ( 23) , working only with abaca,
but abaca that had been grown under different environmental conditions or had been subjected to
different methods of processing, were not able to show such marked differences. Berkley con-
cluded that there was a tendency for the fibers from the inner sheaths to be more resistant to
abrasion than those from the intermediate and outer sheaths and more resistant near the base
than at the tip, but because of the high variability of the results they were unable to show that
these differences were significant.

In general, flex life may be expected to increase with fineness of the fiber, but this does
not always hold true, for Schiefer found that abaca had nearly double the dry strength of henequen
and yet henequen had the highest flexural endurance. The henequen used in Schiefer's work, and
henequen in general, is coarser than abaca. Berkley and co-workers found no significant differ-
ences in the flex life of abaca resulting from differences in the cultural practices followed in its
production. However, the trend was for the strongest fiber to have the greatest flex life.

The Navy Department tests reported above indicate greater flexing in small sisal than in
small abaca ropes and less flexing in bigger sisal ropes than in abaca ropes of similar size.
Although the size of the experimental error in these tests is not known, it js evident that sisal
has remarkable abrasion resistance and nearly equals or may even surpass abaca in flexing
ability.

RIGIDITY

A certain amount of stiffness or rigidity is considered desirable in a cordage fiber, espe-
cially in one that is to be used in the cutter on the knotter of a grain binder, for twine made of a
soft flexible fiber does not cut off in a worn loosely adjusted cutter as easily as one made of a
hard fiber. Humphries and Gray (97) , reporting on studies to find a suitable extender for dimin-
ishing hard fiber supplies, reached the conclusion that much of the trouble arose from knotter
failures, especially with soft twines, and that cotton and paper twines and paper in mixtures with
hard fibers did not give as good results as hard fibers alone.

The measurement of rigidity has not been standardized or performed on many cordage
fibers. Dantzer and Roehrich (90) presented an index of rigidity on abaca, sisal, and henequen
that gave the following results: Abaca G 2. 42, K2.50, Mj 2. 83; sisal Sudan A 2. 31, Sudan C
2. 20, African 1 2. 14, Java 2. 73; and Mexican (henequen) 2. 73. These measurements vary so
much between grades of an individual fiber that the average differences between fibers would not
appear to be significant. However, the experience in trade would not indicate as great differences
in these three leaf fibers as might exist if a stem fiber such as jute had been included.

BREAKING LENGTH OR STRETCH

Abaca fiber is similar to most leaf and stem fibers in that its ability to elongate without
breaking is small in the dry state. Stretch in abaca, as reported by Tirona ( 176) , ranges from a
minimum of 2. 12 to a maximum of 3. 54 percent.

Table 12 shows an average stretch of 2. 61 percent for all grades of abaca with a range of
2. 30 to 3. 01 percent. Interesting differences in the breaking elongation of abaca from different
sources was reported by Sablan (table 14). Differences between Philippine and Sumatra abaca
amounted to 100 percent, indicating that origin as influenced by environment and preparation may
affect this property of stretch.-

FINENESS

Europeans frequently have designated fineness by a number which represents the number of
kilometers of the fiber that weighs one kilogram - called the metric number. Dantzer and Roehricfr
(90) , using this measure found abaca to be slightly finer than sisal, and sisal from Africa and Java
finer than Mexican (henequen). The kilometers of fiber in a kilogram for different samples were:
Abaca G 41, 600, K 52, 500, M 2 23, 000; sisal Sudan A 37, 300, Sudan C 35, 800, African 1 40, 900,
Java 27, 400; and henequen 26, 600.

Another way of expressing fineness is by "denier. " This term is used more commonly with
silk and synthetic fibers than with the coarser long vegetable fibers. A denier equals the number

ABACA- -A CORDAGE FIBER 91

of unit weights of 0. 05 gram per 450-meter length. According to this system (9) cotton equals
1.7, flax 2.2, hemp 3.0, ramie 5.4, and jute 15.0.

For comparison with these fibers the denier was calculated for various other cordage
fibers using the fiber weights given by Schiefer ( 170) . The results show: Jute 15-27, kenaf 50,
pita floja 54, sansevieria 64-97, Yucca elata 78, abaca 139-273, sisal 206-406, and henequen
362-383.

The greater coarseness of the hard fibers as illustrated by these measurements may
account to some extent for the differences in rigidity and flexibility found between the hard leaf
and the finer, softer stem fibers. It should be pointed out, however, that fineness as measured
and discussed here for long vegetable fibers is not a measurement of the ultimate cells but
rather of the commercial trade strand which is made up of many ultimate cells lying side by side
with overlapping ends. These measurements of fineness as given are influenced by the ability
of the fiber bundles to divide or the groups of bundles to split up into finer strands. Fineness is
desired or preferred to coarseness for most purposes by the manufacturer.

The measurements of Dantzer and Roehrich (90) mentioned above for flax and hemp are
believed to be finer than would have been obtained if they had used the same average qualities or
the technique of fiber separation employed by Schiefer (170). It is extermely hard to arrive at
an end point in dividing fiber bundles or splitting strands in soft fibers such as flax, hemp, and
jute, and the results obtained with these fibers are only relative to the qualities tested and the
technique employed. With hard fibers, fineness is more easily measured and duplication of
measurements is more readily obtained because these fibers do not divide into as fine strands
as the soft stem fibers.

Special attention should be directed to the fineness of pita floja (Aechmea magdalenae) and
sansevieria which are leaf fibers of potential value in cordage. The measurements given above
confirm the general belief that the pineapple and lily fibers to which these plants belong are
finer than those of Agave and Musa species.

SWELLING

In between the crystalline cellulose molecular chains of the fiber lies some amorphous
cellulose that is not crystallized. In swelling, water penetrates the amorphous structure more
easily than it does the crystalline and produces an internal swelling of the fiber. If the water or
wetting agent is sufficiently strong in chemical reaction and is permitted to remain in contact
with the fiber long enough, ultimately the crystalline structure will itself swell by the penetration
of the solution. The water in the amorphous swollen form acts somewhat as a lubricant in per-
mitting the fibers to stretch. The swelling of the crystalline structure, however, and the sub-
sequent removal of water through drying brings about a different physical arrangement of the
chains of the crystals. This modifies the properties of the fibers, as happens in the mercer-
ization process.

The amount of swelling in different fibers depends on the amount of amorphous material
that they contain, on the size of the crystallites, and on the presence of polar groups. By refined
methods of measuring swelling Preston and Nimkar ( 143) showed differences between various
synthetic fibers, but they measured swelling in only three natural vegetable fibers. Their
measurements showed that flax swelled more than jute or cotton, swelling in the latter two being
approximately the same.

Some ropes swell so much when wet that they cannot be used in pulley blocks of normal
size without binding. This sometimes occurs when a weaker substitute fiber is used and in order
to increase the strength of the rope a larger size is employed. On swelling, this binds in the
pulley block. A fiber that swells on account of absorption of water becomes heavy and sinks
rapidly. Abaca is generally considered by practical men to be more buoyant than sisal. Table 15
shows the variations that occurred in sisal and abaca ropes of British manufacture when immersed
in water for different periods of time.

The results in table 15 show that sisal increased in girth more than abaca but took up less
water by weight. However, it is apparent from the chemical results that the low uptake of water
might have resulted partly from the greater amounts of oils (matter extracted by petroleum ether)
introduced in the course of manufacture. The difference is considerable and in respect to non-
swelling, abaca rope appears to possess a decided advantage over sisal rope.

The British Admiralty (80) in a number of additional tests attempted to measure the swelling
of cordage fibers. They reported an increase in girth of the 3- and 7-inch abaca and sisal ropes
after soaking in water and a reduction in girth when they were allowed to dry in air. Sisal rope
was found to absorb water very rapidly, the bulk in the first hour, after which the increase in
weight was small. Abaca rope, on the other hand, absorbed water much more slowly, but after

261543 O - 54 - 7

U. S. DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE

TABLE 15. — Variations in sisal and abaca ropes when soaked in water for
different lengths of time (78)

Item

Sisal No. 1

Sisal No. 2

Abaca J

Increase in girth.

Soaked in tap water for 48 hours

Decrease in length

Increase in girth

Increase in weight

Weight per foot dry

Weight per foot wet

Alteration in twist

Matter extracted by light petroleum

Percent

6.25
11.1
38.91

Pounds

0.280

.4-15

Nil

Percent

6.25

Percent

5.58

8.69

4^.37

Pounds

0.259

.404

Nil

Percent

3.8

Percent

5.95

5.26

52.89

Pounds

0.261

.425

Nil

Percent

3.4

Soaked in sea water for 4 months

Percent

9.26

Percen t

6.21

Percent

3.60

167 hours or more appeared to take up as much water as sisal, or more. Abaca swelled less
than sisal in the early stages, but after 2 hours the swelling was about the same.

The rate of shrinkage on drying was also about the same, but on the average the sisal rope
more nearly returned to its original girth than the abaca. The report did state that sisal rope
was likely to unlay more than abaca rope when wetted for considerable periods and on drying
this tendency was still noticeable, which may account to some extent for the statement that sisal
does not recover its original girth.

BUOYANCY

The British Admiralty (80) in its study of the swelling of British ropes included tests on
the buoyancy of small bundles of 6-inch lengths of fiber strands containing none of the oily matter
that might be introduced in the manufacturing process. Their results, shown in table 16, demon-
strate clearly the superior buoyancy of abaca over henequen and sisal. Henequen appears to be
slightly superior to sisal.

TABLE 16. — Buoyancy of abaca, sisal, and henequen fiber

Fiber

Grade

100 fiber strands
in bundle

Weight of
bundle

Time to
sink

Bundles of equal
weight

Weight of
bundle

Time to
sink

Abaca

Do...

Sisal (Java)

Do ,

Sisal (East African),

Do ,

Henequen (Mexican) . . ,

Kobla "A"

Sockamandi "X"

No. 1

No. 2

Grams

0.46

1.32

2.43

.64

.43

.56

.40

.85

Min.

4
0
0
0
0
1

Sec .

Grams
1.5

1.5
1.5
1.5
1.5
1.5
1.5
1.5

Min.

' 0
1
0
1

Sec.

0
0
0
45
10
45
20
30

ABACA- -A CORDAGE FIBER

The authors concluded that the buoyancy was not due to any great difference in chemical
composition but rather to the readiness with which the fibers absorb moisture, and it seems not
unlikely that this in turn is largely dependent on differences in the surface of the fibers which
give rise to differences of surface tension in contact with water.

The Imperial Institute (82) reported that phormium is capable of withstanding the action
of sea water over prolonged periods, though it is hardly up to the standard of abaca. Phormium
was found to absorb water at a more rapid rate than abaca and to sink more rapidly. It also
swelled more and remained swollen when dried.

STRENGTH LOSS DUE TO IMMERSION IN WATER

Long Period:

Deterioration of fiber resulting from long immersion in water is due largely to biological
causes.

In July 1932 the Imperial Institute reported the results of four series of tests on abaca,
sisal, and phormium in which ropes were exposed to the action of sea water in crates so that
they were submerged and uncovered with changes of the tides. In the report on the fourth series
of trials (81) it was stated that the results "confirm those of the previous series and demonstrate
that ropes made of East African Sisal and New Zealand hemp [phormium] when exposed to sea-
water are capable of retaining their strength to a similar extent to Manila ropes. " A summary
of the results, given in table 17, shows the percentage decreases in average strength for different
periods.

The abaca ropes used in this fourth series had greater initial strength than the sisal or
phormium ropes, but after four to nine months the percentage loss was approximately the same.
The small differences are probably of no practical significance.

TABLE 17. — Percentage decrease in average strength of sisal, Manila hemp, and New Zealand hemp
(phormium) ropes after different periods of immersion (8l)

Months

Sisal hemp

No. 1

African

No. 1
Brushed

No. 2

African

No. 1 Un-

brushed

No. 3

Java

Manila hemp

No. 4- No. 5 No. 6

S. 3.

M. 1.

New

Zealand

hemp

No. 7

Fair

2 (Mar. 16-May ll)..

4- (Mar. 16- July 14-).

6 (Mar. 16-Sept. 17)

9 (Mar. 16-Dec. 16).

21.3
51.6
58.2
66.3

25.2
54-. 6
63.8
73.7

24-. 3
58.9
70.5
79.3

8.1

50.4-
65.1
73.3

17.7
53.9
62.5
74-. 5

11.2
53.6
64-. 7

72.6

15.2
54.9
66.2
71.4-

Short Period:

The action of water on the physical properties of the cordage fibers is more specific in
short than in long immersion tests because in the short tests biological activity does not have an
opportunity to influence the results. Instead of all fibers losing strength, some actually grow
stronger when wet.

Table 18 contains data furnished through the courtesy of the United States Navy 02 that have
a practical bearing on this question. The specimens were immersed in tap water at 70° F. to a
foot depth and tested while wet. The breaking length was obtained by multiplying the breaking
strength by the number of feet per pound. In general, abaca, cotton, sisal, ramie, and caroa
increased in strength when wet, but American hemp unless tarred appeared to lose strength.
Table 18 further illustrates the superior strength of abaca. The dry strength in order of decreas-
ing importance in ropes of l-l/2-inch circumference was: Abaca, henequen, hemp, sisal, ramie,
and jute; with wet strength the order was: Abaca, ramie, henequen, sisal, jute, and hemp.

102 HIMMELFARB, D., and LUTTS, C. G. PROPERTIES OF MANILA SUBSTITUTE FIBERS. 13 pp. Boston. June 1, 1943.
(Navy Yard, Boston Materials Lab. Report 8001.) [Unpublished.]

TABLE U

U. S. DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE
-Effect of wetting on the breaking strength (length) of cordage fibers103

Fiber

Size
circumference

Strength

Dry

Wet

Strength ratio
wet to dry

Abaca

Sisal

Henequen

Jute

Cotton

American hemp

Ramie

Caroa*

Inche s
1-1/2
3
3
3

1-1/2
1-1/2
3
3
3

1-1/2

1-3/8 (tarred)
1-1/2
3

1/8
1/4
1/4
1-1/2

1-1/2 (tarred)
1-3/4
1-3/4
1-3/4
1-3/4
1-3/4
3

3 (tarred)
1-1/2 (Haitian)
1-1/2 (Alabama)
2-1/4

Pounds

2,870

10,000

11,300

11,600

2,034

2,010

6,680

8,080

7,950

2,410

1,170

1,860

6,100

210

600

605

2,080

1,550

4,100

3,700

3,660

3,780

3,605

7,000

9,100

2,030

1,320

3,600

Pounas

3,000

10,950

11,850

11,200

1,827

2,060

6,740

8,690

7,200

2,000

1,050

1,820

5,600

245

810

735

1,210

1,480

2,350

2,550

3,650

3,660

3,100

4,550

7,650

2,520

3,070

4,100

1.04

1.10

1.05

.97

.90

1.02

1.01

1.07

.91

.83

.90

.98

.92

1.17

1.35

1.21

.58

.96

.57

.69

1.00

.97

.86

.65

.84

1.24

1.69

1.14

-03 See footnote 102.

The percentage decrease in strength of rope male of different fibers after exposure to sea
water for different periods is shown in table 19. The results of the tests show that No. 1 Brushed
Sisal rope was slightly but not materially inferior to Manila Streaky No. 3 in its resistance to sea
water. Phormium losses were small at first, being similar to those of abaca, but the final loss
was equal to that of sisal. Indian hemp (Crotalaria) was more resistant than Russian hemp
(Cannabis) , but both were inferior to abaca, sisal, and phormium.

RESISTANCE TO IMMERSION IF TARRED

The British Admiralty in cooperation with the Imperial Institute made a study of the value
of Empire fibers as substitutes for abaca, and after some ten years of testing partially adopted
for service ropes made of sisal and phormium. Continuing their investigations they tested sisal
in tarred ropes for different periods of immersion (83) .

While the results were on sisal rather than on abaca they are believed to be applicable to
some extent to most cordage fibers. It was found in 9 months' tests that tarred sisal in ropes
under normal storage conditions lost 6 percent strength, duplicate tarred samples submerged
and exposed by sea tide lost 29 percent (untarred 76 percent), and triplicate samples exposed on
a roof lost 11 percent (untarred 13 percent). The quantity of tar (Archangel) absorbed by the
fiber was 12. 87 percent in addition to about 4-1/2 percent batching compound.

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RELATIVE STRENGTH OF ROPES OF DIFFERENT FIBERS

The Boston Navy Yard10* has reported on the strength of ropes made from abaca and a
number of abaca substitute fibers. The results show the unit strength of the ropes as measured
by the breaking length, which is the value obtained by multiplying the breaking strength by the
number of feet per pound. Table 20 shows the relative strength of ropes made from the more
common cordage fibers. Hemp, ramie, and caroa were not discussed in relation to the other
fibers, possibly because there were only two tests each. However, it is obvious that hemp and
ramie fibers make strong rope even though not equal to abaca. The same report shows the com-
parative strength of ropes of the different fibers when wet and dry. The ropes for wetting were
immersed in tap water at 70° F. to a depth of one foot and tested while wet. Notations in table
20 of the specific reaction of the ropes when wet are those of the present authors. They are
based on averages of the tests performed, but whether the quality of a particular fiber as deter-
mined in one series of tests is representative of the fiber in general is open to question. The
validity of the results with abaca, sisal, henequen, and jute is confirmed, however, by the work
of Dewey and Whitlock (51), who reported on nearly 3,000 comparative tests of strength, un-
corrected for slight variations in weight per foot and turn, as follows:

Abaca

Number of samples 41 1

Average strength/abaca spec 1. 128

Average strength/abaca 1. 00

Specified strength ratio 1. 00

TABLE 20. — Breaking length (strength) of ropes made of different cordage fibers

Sisal

Jute

Henequen

1, 898

558

.942

.799

.649

. 83

. 71

. 58

70-. 80

.60

Min. breaking length

Strength
(relative value)

Approximate
loss or gain
in strength
when wet

Fiber

1-1/2"
circ.

2-1/4"
circ.

3"
circ.

Feet

35,245
28,196
21, 147
21,147
19,575
33,517
32,063

Feet
22, 500

Feet
33,390
26, 712
20, 034
20,034
17, 850

100
80
60
60
55

10% gain

Sisal

Gain less than abaca

17% loss
6% loss

25% gain
20% loss

24-69% gain

15% gain

Leonard and Wexler ( 1 10) made a study of many natural and synthetic fibers used in ropes
for mountain climbing. Because of the growing importance of synthetics in cordage a table showing
their results is included here (table 21).

The findings on natural fibers are of the order: Abaca 100, hemp 90, flax 87, sisal 73,
cotton 66, and jute 46. These are not greatly out of line with the earlier results reported. Cotton
is a little high and jute is definitely low. However, for the specialty use to which this type of rope
is put - one involving human life - it is not surprising that cotton should rank higher than in the
Navy Yard tests, for only the best strength long staple cotton would probably be used in a cotton
rope for mountain climbing. Nylon shows great strength both in the dry and wet condition.

Tests conducted by the National Bureau of Standards105 show the relative strength of hemp
(Cannabis sativa), sisal, and jute ropes. In no case did the addition of 33-1/3 percent or 50 per-
cent of hemp fiber to sisal reduce the strength of ropes in dry tests, but in every case it caused a
reduction in wet strength. The test relationship of these fibers in different ropes was as follows:

104 See Footnote No. 102.

105 U. S. NATIONAL BUREAU OF STANDARDS. ROPES MADE FROM SISAL, FROM AMERICAN HEMP AND SISAL IN
MIXTURES, AND FROM JUTE. (Natl. Bur. Standards. Report Supplementary to the Bur. Aeronaut., Navy Dept. on tests of Feb. 5,
1945.) [Unpublished. ]

ABACA- -A CORDAGE FIBER

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U. S. DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE

Composition

Nominal
diameter

Breaking strength

Ratio to sisal

Sisal parts

Hemp parts

Dry

Wet

Dry

Vet

ALL

1
1

ute
m

Inch

1/2

9/16

1/2
1

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2,450
2,670
2,910
3,202
2,844
2,920
2,970
8,410
8,830
7,640
8,470
7,385
8,140

1,647
6,486

' Pound

2,400
2,220
2,880
2,310
2,728
2,390
2,592
8,420
7,560
7,070
6,440
7,240
6,280

1,614
6,310

Percent

100
+108.97

100
+110.03

100
+102.67
+104.43

100
+105.11

100
+110.86

100
+110.22

-67.22
-83.02

Percent

100
-108 10

All

100
-124.67

All

100

118.32

-105.24

All

100
-111.37

All

100
-109.78

All

100
-115.28

-48.69
-83.27

Calculations made by the writers from the results presented by the Bureau of Standards
show that the substitution of hemp to the extent of 33-1/3 to 50 percent increased the strength of
sisal rope from 5 to 10 percent in the dry state, whereas in the wet state hemp in these propor-
tions decreased the strength 10 to 20 percent. In the dry state sisal was approximately 20 to 50
percent stronger than jute.

It must be recognized that many factors influence the strength of ropes made of different
fibers and the results of no one test can be used as criteria for rating the different fibers. How-
ever, the reader in reviewing the tests presented earlier in this monograph with raw fibers and
ropes will readily recognize the similarity of results. By way of summary, table 22 has been
compiled mainly from literature previously cited and is presented here to show the order in
which various investigators have rated the more common cordage fibers for strength. The table
brings out a few divergent results, principally the work of Braga (29) in Brazil. Why his results
differ so widely from those of other workers is not clear. It can hardly be that he used an un-
usually weak sample of abaca, or the reverse - an unusually strong sample --as the standard.
Table 22 brings out the great strength of abaca in comparison with other cordage fibers. It
further shows that hemp, flax, ramie, and sansevieria are fibers that might well be given more
consideration for use in cordage where strength is esteemed.

ROPE STRENGTH AS INFLUENCED BY WEATHERING AND PRESERVATIVE TREATMENTS

More experimental testing is now being conducted on the influence of weathering on the
strength of rope and the effectiveness of different preservative treatments than on the basic
differences inherent in the fibers. These tests have added greately to the knowledge of fibers in
general, for the untreated checks normally included in the tests yield comparative data for the
fibers in their natural state.

Navy Yard tests 11:L on outdoor weathering for different periods of exposure, with and with-
out specific treatments of abaca, sisal, jute, and cotton twines are presented in table 23. From
these results it was concluded that the particular twines of abaca, sisal, and jute were practically
equal in resistance to the sun-weather exposure while cotton was least resistant. To some extent
treatments improved the resistance of sisal twine to sun weathering, copper naphthenate being
the most effective in this respect. The effect of straight weathering was about equal at the two
locations, Boston and New Orleans.

111 HERBEIN, S. D., and QUINLAN, W. H. WEATHERING TESTS ON CORDAGE AT SOUTHERN REGIONAL LABORATORY,
NEW ORLEANS. 5 pp. Boston. Feb. 17, 1949. (Navy Yard, Boston. Materials Lab. Report 9671.) [Unpublished.]

ABACA- -A CORDAGE FIBER

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U. S. DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE

TABLE 23. — Tensile strength results for 3 -ply cordage exposed to weathering at New Orleans, La.,

and Boston, Mass.

Strength, New Orleans

Strength, Boston

Material

Orig-
inal

Reduction after
exposure

Orig-
inal

Reduction after
exposure

3 mos.

6 mos.

9 mos.

12 mos.

5 mos.

9 mos.

12 mos.

Lbs.

197
252
420
373

429

438
402

25.4

19.8

12.6

4.6

14.9

18.7
10.2

54.3

28.2

32.1
29.8

23.3

26.0
27.4

66.0

31.3

32.6

43.7

31.7

28.3
32.6

71.1

43.3

40.2

51.7

33.8

38.1
42.3

Lbs.

254
445
453

405

13.5

20.0

8.8

0.5

17.3
23.4
32.9

7.7

38.6

40.5

Sisal

40.2

Treated sisal:

Cu Napht. (0.2$ cu)

(asphalt, dilute)...
Cu Oleate (0.15$ cu)

Dowicide 7 (0.1$)

21.0

Another Navy Yard test112 reports work of a similar nature which included in addition to
the outdoor weathering, comparisons of several other types of exposure. Specimens subjected
to humid stowage were placed on wooden platforms, wetted from time to time with tap water, and
covered with a paulin. The "sea and weather" was a tidal water coverage and exposure test and
the soil burial was 2 inches coverage at 65 percent humidity and 80° F. Table 24 illustrates the
results with untreated-preservative ropes. Several preservatives were added to sisal specimens.
The results of these tests, which are presented in table 24, show that preservative treatments
gave some improvement over no treatment and copper naphthenate was superior to the others
tried.

TABLE 24. — Relative order of efficiency (strength) of untreated ropes subjected to different
types of destructive agencies (ranging from good to poor)

Miami, Fla.

Duxbury, Mass.

Humid
stowage

Sea and
weather

Weather

Humid
stowage

Sea and
weather

Soil
burial

Consensus

Abaca

Sisal

Jute

Sisal-hemp

Hemp

Jute

Abaca

Sisal

Sisal-hemp

Hemp

Abaca

Sisal

Jute

Sisal-hemp

Hemp

Abaca

Jute

Sisal

Sisal-hemp

Hemp

Abaca

Jute

Sisal

Sisal-hemp

Hemp

Jute

Abaca

Sisal

Sisal-hemp

Hemp

Abaca
Jute
Sisal

Sisal -hemp
Hemp

DETERIORATION DUE TO HOT STACK GASES

While the results of studies showing the extent of deterioration in abaca brought about by
exposure to hot gases are not available, the Bureau of Ships of the United States Navy Depart-

ment has supplied test data on the deterioration caused by hot stack gases in signal halliards
made of flax. The test consisted in flexing 1-inch, Aczol-treated halliards around sheaves in an
atmosphere of fumes of burning oil at 400° F. This temperature represents the charring point

112 U. S. NAVY DEPARTMENT. INVESTIGATION OF CORDAGE PRESERVATIVES. 4 pp. Boston. July 15, 1946. (Navy Yard,
Boston. Materials Lab. Report 8747B.) (Progress.) [Unpublished.]

113 U. S. NAVY DEPARTMENT. HALLIARDS, RESISTANCE TO HOT STACK GASES. Boston. Nov. 1, 1948. (Navy Yard,
Boston. Materials Lab. Report 9111.) [Unpublished.]

ABACA- -A CORDAGE FIBER

of vegetable fibers, and halliards in service are subjected to hot stack gases reaching this
temperature. The halliards on the sheaths were subjected to 60 oscillations per minute. The
following results were obtained:

101

Temperature, °F.

300

350

400

450

500

Oscillations to failure at a load of 5 lbs.

( average ) . . .

8,646

4,476

2,271

1,020

633

Load in

pounds s

t-b 400° F

Oscillations to failure (average 10 tests).

2,271

840

492

It will be noted that flexing durability (oscillations to failure) decreased from 8,646 at
300° F. to 633 at 500° F. and that it decreased from 2, 271 under a load of 5 pounds to 492 under
a load of 1 5 pounds.

While these tests do not show how the fiber is tendered when subjected to high temperatures
and fumes, it does show the extent to which deterioration may occur. Fibers to be used where
they would be subjected to high temperatures or fumes might be expected to respond somewhat
similarly to those used in the tests described, the amount of deterioration varying with the
severity of the temperatures and the stresses to which the fiber was subjected.

CORDAGE STANDARDS

Cordage standards are judged first in reference to their value in the raw condition in which
they are off ered intrade. The impression made by thefiber at this stage often determines its suc-
cess in competition with other fibers, or in the case of a little known fiber, governs its acceptance in
trade.

The classification of fibers intrade is only a further step in the assignment of quality rating.
Classification begins in the production areas where such factors as variations in color and length and,
to some extent, fineness, luster, and cleanliness are determined by quick visual observation. This
field- and trade-inspection classification has proved practical. Nevertheless, the trade would like to
be able to place more reliance on classification, and hence measures taken to improve the methods of
classification are well received by manufacturers . Unfortunately segregation of fibers into grade
groups in the production areas, which must be performed cheaply in man labor and as quickly as pos-
sible, does not allow much latitude for introducing refinements of mechanical, physical, and chemical
instruments or techniques that would be of practical and economic value. Factors of strength, fine-
ness, spinnability, softness, brittleness, suppleness, elasticity etc ., all of which play apart in deter-
mining the final value of the cordage product, can hardly be measured accurately in afield classifica-
tion system and must be determined mainly in the laboratory. Fortunately, however, the manufacturer
knows from his own factory experience in spinning specific grades of definite origin that a certain grade
of fiber has the properties that will result, when spun in his mill, in a product that can meet a market
demand and competition.

A search of the literature has failed to reveal any singleplace in which descriptions of the cordage
standards adopted by the various producing countries are available. For this reason the official grades
of the common cordage fibers adopted by the countries of origin are brought together here. The classi-
fications of the different fibers are recorded as of indicated dates . Changes in the classification sys-
tem do occur from time to time and for one not familiar with the trade it would be well to check the up-
to-dateness of data relating to a particular fiber and the country in which it originates. Table 25 shows
the classification designations of the more common cordage fibers by country of origin. It should be
understood that these grades are general rather than specific, for certaintolerances arepermitted
with which the trade is familiar.
ABACA, CANTON, AMOKID, AND PACOL
Philippines

As early as 1902 correspondence of the UnitedStates Department of Agriculture with the Gov-
ernor of the Philippine Islands shows that American manufacturers favored an inspection under
Philippine Islands Government supervision of the then existing abaca fiber qualities. An Act, No. 2380,
of the Third Philippine Legislature, SpecialSession of 1914, directed the Director of Agriculture to
establish, define, and designate standards to become the official standards . This order was followed
by many others designating changes in the established standards up to the Fiber Inspection Adminis-

102

U. S. DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE

TABLE 25. — Grade designations of the more common cordage fibers by country of origin

ABACA

SISAL

Philippines

Central
America

Indo-
nesia

Kenya, Tan-
ganyika ,
and Uganda

Mozam-
bique

Indo-
nesia

Philip-
pines

Comores

Haiti

Brazil

Hand or

c TA
% TB

1-1 TC
8 TD
w XE

o
o
o

Spindle

•H

o
o

0) a)

> O

Jl
G
H

LI
L2
M2

DL
DM

Y-l
Y-2
Y-3
Y-4

0-1
0-2
0-3

T-l
T-2
T-3

Waste

Deco

Clear

AD-1
AD-2
AD-3

Superior

Good

Fair

Fair X

Streaky

<s>

[3L]

UG
SCWF

AD-4

AD-Y

AD-0

AD-T

Tow

Tow-1

Tow-2

Extra
1
A

2
2SL

3L
3

A X
B Y
C Z

Tow 1

Waste 1
Waste 2

D XX

SR-1
SR-2
SR-3

P. Premiere

A.Deuxieme

B.Troisieme

SR-Y

SR-0

SR-T

Peas-
ant

T-3

T-4

trative Order No. 4 (Revised) of December 1 , 1939, effective date July 1 , 1940, entitled, "Determina-
tions and description of the official standard-s for the various commercial grades of certain Philippine
fibers ." The grades of Philippine abacafor tagal (fine textile fiber) and normal cordage are given below:

Tagal Grades

Letter Designation

Name of Grade

Tagal Extra Prime

Tagal Prime

Tagal Superior

Tagal Good

Tagal Fair

ABACA- -A CORDAGE FIBER 103

TABLE 25. — Grade designations of the more common cordage fibers by country of origin — Continued

HENEQUEN

MAGUEY
(cantala)

PHORMIUM

MAURITIUS

CAROA

Mexico

Cuba

Philip-
pines

New Zealand

St. Helena

Chile

Argen-
tine

Azores

Island of
Mauritius

Brazil

(pite-

ira)

Brazil

A-A

B-l

M
M-l

A
B
C

MR-1
MR-2
MR-3

MR-Y
MR-0

Superior
Fine

Good-fair

High-point fair

Fair

Common

Rejected

Prime
Tiger
J.D. &Co.

A or I
B or II
Cor III
D or IV

Hemp

Superior

Prime

Very Good

Good

Fair

Common

Raw
Hard

Tipo 1
Tipo 3
Tipo 5
Tipo 7
Tipo 9

Tow

MR-T

Tow 1st
Tow 2nd
Tow 3rd

Stripper

slips-lst
Stripper

slips -2nd

Tow 1
Tow 2

Tow

Normal Grades

(I) Grades of Excellent Cleaning

Letter Designation

(II) Grades of Good Cleaning

Letter Designation

Jl
G
H

Name of Grade

Superior Current

Good Current

Midway

25% Over Fair Current

Streaky Two

Streaky Three

Name of Grade

Fair Current
Superior Seconds No. 1
Soft Seconds
Soft Brown

104

U. S. DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE
(ill) Grades of Fair Cleaning

Name of Grade

Letter Designation

(IV) Grades of Coarse Cleaning

Letter Designation

LI
L2
M2

(V) Grades of Very Coarse Cleaning

Letter Designation

DL
DM

Letter Designation

Yl
Y2
Y3
Y4
Ol
02
03
Tl
T2
T3

Letter Designation

AD-1

AD-2

AD-3

AD-4

AD-Y

AD-O

AD-T

Residual Grades

Waste Grade

Decorticated Grades

Superior Seconds No. 2
Medium Seconds
Medium Brown

Name of Grade

Coarse

Coarse Seconds

Coarse Brown

Name of Grade

Daet Coarse

Daet Coarse Brown

Name of Grade

Damaged One
Damaged Two
Damaged Three
Damaged Four
Strings One
Strings Two
Strings Three
Tow One
Tow Two
Tow Three

Waste

Name of Grade

Abaca Decorticated Superior
Abaca Decorticated Good
Abaca Decorticated Fair
Abaca Decorticated Strips
Abaca Decorticated Damaged
Abaca Decorticated Strings
Abaca Decorticated Tow

ABACA--A CORDAGE FIBER 105

Grades of Canton and Similar Fibers (including amokid, and other very light,
weak and spurious fibers from similar plants of unknown origin - Musa sp. )

Letter Designation Name of Grade

Can-1 Canton One

Can-2 Canton Two

Can- 3 Canton Three

Can-X Canton X

Grades of Pacol (Musa sp. )

Letter Designation Name of Grade

Pcl-1 Pacol One

Pcl-Z Pacol Two

Pcl-X Pacol X

Central America

As previously stated, the production of abaca in Central America is conducted in Panama,
Costa Rica, Guatemala, and Honduras. Since 1943 it has been supervised by the United Fruit
Company under an agreement with the Reconstruction Finance Corporation of the United States
Government. The methods of production are very similar in all four countries and this permits
a uniform system of grading for all countries. The grades have been established and approved
by the United States Reconstruction Finance Corporation and the United Fruit Company. They
represent government grades promulgated by the United States rather than government grades
of the individual Latin American countries.

The grades as originally presented by the Office of Defense Supplies, R. F. C. , July 1,
1946 were: Superior, Good, Streaky, Brown, and Tow. On December 17, 1948, the R.F.C.
introduced a new grade between-Superior and Good designated as Clear, and by February 7,
1949, Clear was designated to take the place of Superior and Good. As practically no Brown
fiber has been produced the Central American grades are now only Clear, Streaky, and Tow.

Although the grades are determined on the basis of strength, cleaning, color, and length
these factors are in reality minor in that unless the fiber is badly damaged it is passed as
possessing average normal strength, the cleaning is all similar, and is considered good in that
all nonfibrous material is normally removed. The grades are primarily based on color since
Clear represents any fiber from light ocher through ivory to white and Streaky represents any
with purple or red tinges. The minimum length of line fiber is 30 inches; fiber below this length
is graded Tow.

Indonesia

There are no official government standards for abaca grades in Indonesia. The fiber is
graded by the principal growers and marketers with the designations for long fiber as follows:

Superior: Excellent cleaning, color very light ivory white; length 3 to 4 feet.

Good: Excellent cleaning, color light cream or ivory white; length 3 to 4 1/2 feet.

Fair: Good cleaning, color predominantly cream with a few yellowish and purple

streaks and amber spots; length 3 to 4 1/2 feet.
Fair X: Good cleaning, color light brownish, white with some purple and brown or amber

streaks and a few black strips; length 3 to 4 l/2 feet.

SISAL

Kenya, Tanganyika, and Uganda

These countries follow the same classification system to a marked degree in marketing
their sisal fiber. The prescribed grades have not been covered by any official government order,
but it was expected that some action would be taken in 1950. The grades were introduced

106

U. S. DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE

by the Kenya Sisal Growers Association and have been accepted by related trade organizations
throughout the world. The Kenya Sisal Board furnished the following East African grading defi-
nitions in January 1950:

Kenya Sisal Grading Definitions

Length from 3 ft. with average of 3 ft. , 6 ins. Free of defective decortication.
Properly brushed. Free of tow, bunchy ends, knots and harshness. Color -
creamy white to cream.

The same as Grade 1, but colour yellowish, sunburned, slightly spotted or
slightly discolored.

Length from 2 ft. , 6 ins. upwards. Free of defective decortication. Properly
brushed. Free of tow, bunchy ends, knots and harshness. Color - creamy white
to cream.

Bale marks

Length from 3 ft. upwards, consisting of brushed fiber that does not conform to
Grades 1, A or 2; although minor defects in color and cleaning are allowable it
must be free of barky or undecorticated fiber and knots.

Same as No. 3L but length from 2 ft. upwards.

Fiber that does not conform to the above-mentioned grades as regards length,
color and cleaning, but minimum length to be 2 ft.

Length not less than 18 inches and not more than 24 inches, otherwise as No. 3.

Note 1 All grades to be parallel packing, no ties or knots, free from dampness
and excessive baling pressure.

Note 2 The word "harshness" included in the definitions of No. 1, A and 2 grades
only refers to fiber from which the gum has not been sufficiently extracted
by cleaning and does not apply to fiber which is coarse in texture due to
soil or climatic conditions.

Sisal Tow

UG
SCWF

Proper tow from the brushing machine. Free of line fibre and cuttings and
reasonably free of dust but entirely free of sweepings and knots. Color - creamy
white to cream.

Tow 1

Darker color allowed. Small percentage of line fiber, long white cuttings, and Tow 2

not entirely free of dust but entirely free of sweepings or knots.

Mozambique 11<*

The fibre of sisal is classified in the following patterns, in accordance with official
Portuguese Government standards.115

Sisal extra: Consisting of fibre whose length, texture, colour, grade of brush and packing are
satisfactory to certain requisites between the producer and the buyer, for special
purposes.

Sisal 1: Consisting of fibre with 90 centimetres (35.4 inches) or more in length, of white,

ivory or slightly cream colour, resulting from the selection, decortication, washing,
drying brushing, classification, handling and baling conducted correctly, without any
tolerance of defects or of impurities.

114 Report 9 of Mar. 12, 1949 from American Consulate General, Lourenco Marques, Mozambique. [Unpublished.]

115 Official Portuguese Government Standards as furnished by U. S. Importer, Mar. 10, 1949.

ABACA--A CORDAGE FIBER 107

Sisal A: Consisting of fibre with 90 centimetres (35. 4 inches) or more in length, slightly-

spotted or of a yellowish colour slightly burnt or discolored, without tolerance of
other defects or of impurities.

Sisal 2: Consisting of fibre with 75 centimetres (29. 5 inches) or more in length, of white,

ivory or slightly cream colour, as a result of selection, decortication, washing,
drying, brushing, classification, handling and baling conducted correctly, without
tolerance of defects or of impurities.

Sisal 2 SL: Consisting of fibre with 60 centimetres (23. 6 inches) or more in length, of white,
ivory or slightly cream colour, resulting from selection, decortication, washing,
drying, brushing, classification, handling and baling conducted correctly, without
tolerance of defects or of impurities.

Sisal 3 L: Consisting of fibre with 90 centimetres (35. 4 inches) or more in length, admitting
the following tolerances of defects:

(a) Reduced percentage of fibre deficiently decorticated.

(b) Reduced percentage of spotted fibre or of fibre of spotted colour.

Sisal 3: Consisting of fibre with 60 centimetres (23. 6 inches) or more in length, admitting

the following tolerances of defects:

(a) Reduced percentage of fibre deficiently decorticated.

(b) Reduced percentage of spotted fibre or of fibre of spotted colour.

Sisal R: Consisting of fibre of 60 centimetres (23. 6 inches) or more in length, admitting a

considerable percentage of fibre imperfectly decorticated, spotted or of spotted
colour, or deficiently brushed.

The special characteristics of the patterns of Sisal Extra must be communicated to
the Export Control Board, in due time by the producers interested.

The tow of Sisal shall be classified in the following patterns:

Tow 1 : Consisting of twisted fibre, of cream or yellowish colour, sufficiently clean,

admitting the tolerance of a small percentage of straight fibre, but free from
entanglements, knots, bark, pulp, dust or other impurities.

The waste of Sisal shall be classified in the following patterns:

Waste 1 or Consisting of residues of cream fibre, fibre washed and brushed, without impurities.

Clean

Waste:

Waste 2 or Consisting of residue of cream or spotted fibre, only washed, with impurities.

Dirty

Waste:

Indonesia

The present system of grading agave fibers in Indonesia was set up during the period of the
Netherlands East Indies political administration. It was not a government system but one- in which
each producing company set up its own grades. The system in most common use is as follows:116

Grade A: White fiber- -length more than 90 cm.

B: White fiber- -length between 60 and 90 cm.
C: White fiber- -length between 50 and 60 cm.
D: Waste and "tow" (Kawoel)

116 FIBERS-NETHERLANDS INDIES. Report of Aug. 6, 1941 from American Embassy, Djakarta, Java, [unpublished.]

261543 O - 54 - 8

108 U. S. DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE

Certain estates, however, make the following classifications:

Grade A: White fiber- -length more than 105 cm.

B: White fiber- -length between 75 and 105 cm.
C: White fiber- -length between 50 and 75 cm.
D: Waste and "tow" (Kawoel)

The estates of H. V. A. (Handelsveereniging Amsterdam), estimated to produce 65 percent
of the sisal grown in Indonesia, use the first set of white fiber grades shown above and the follow-
ing system for off colored grades:

Grade X: Off colored fiber- -length more than 90 cm.

Y: Off colored fiber- -length between 60 and 90 cm.
Z: Off colored fiber- -length between 50 and 60 cm.
XX: Inferior grades

Philippines

The Commonwealth of the Philippines, Department of Agriculture and Commerce, Fiber
Inspection Administrative Order No. 4 (Revised) of December 1, 1939, effective date July 1 , 1940,
designates the official grades of sisal.

Sisal- -Retted and Decorticated Sisal, whether washed
or not in sea or fresh water - Agave sisalana, Per.

Letter Designation Name of Grade

SR- 1 Sisal One

SR- 2 Sisal Two

SR-3 Sisal Three

SR-Y Sisal Damaged

SR-O Sisal Strings

SR-T Sisal Tow

Comore Islands

The grades of sisal as described for the Comore Islands in 1947 by Hebert (8J) are:

P. Premiere quality well cleaned, white, over 90 cms. in length.

A. Deuxieme quality some imperfections in cleaning, white, and over 70-75 cms. in length.

B. Troisieme quality more imperfections in cleaning and over 50-65 cms. in length.

Haiti

Haiti was the only large producer of sisal in the Western Hemisphere in the years between
World Wars I and II. Haitian sisal is considered an exceedingly high quality product and the main-
tenance of Haitian standards has been well adhered to. Haitian sisal was the only sisal fiber
available from the Western Hemisphere countries for many years until the Brazilian sisal industry
became established. The Brazilian industry has grown with surprising rapidity since the first
fiber was produced in 1941. While individual private companies early adopted methods of classi-
fication, a Haitian Executive Order No. 262, dated ApriL8 and promulgated in Le Moniteur of
April 12, 1943, established official export standards for grades of sisal processed in Haiti. The
Standardization Committee took- counsel in formulating these grades with the general managers of
the two largest sisal plantations in Haiti. The order (translated) follows:

Article 1. Beginning the first of October, 1943, all processed sisal destined for export
must be classified and declared in customs, following the description of one of the grades defined
below, which it is understood must be clean and dry:

Grade A: Fibers more than 36 inches long, white or light in color.

Grade X: Fibers more than 36 inches long, white or greyish white in color, with some few

yellow or brown stains;
Grade B: Fibers 24 to 36 inches long, white or light color;

ABACA--A CORDAGE FIBER 109

Grade Y: Fibers 24 to 36 inches long, white or greyish white in color, with some few

yellow or brown stains;
Grade S: Fibers 24 or more inches in length, greyish white slightly pulpy.
Grade T: Fiber waste (tow), white in color;
Grade T-3 Tow, pale cream in color;
Grade T-4 Tow, deeper cream than the preceding.

Article 2.- The weight of the bales of each kind, or grade, shall be fixed by an announce-
ment of the Department of Commerce and National Economy.

Article 3. Any bale which does not conform to the characteristics of the grade declared
shall not be allowed for export.

Article 4. The present Arrete shall be published and carried out under the supervision of
the Secretaries of State for Agriculture and Labor and for Finance, Commerce and National
Economy.

Done at the National Palace at Port-au-Prince, the 8th day of April, 1943, in the 140 year
of Independence.

Elie Lescot

By the President:

Secretary of State for Agriculture and Labor

Maurice Dartigue

Secretary of State for Finance, Commerce and National Economy

Abel Lacroix

Brazil

Beginning with a production of some 15 tons of sisal in 1941, Brazil produced an estimated
30, 000 tons in 1949. With such a new and rapid expansion in production, the quality and practices
of trade packaging have not been as well standardized as in some of the older production areas.
Sisal like many other fibers in Brazil follows an official Brazilian classification system based on
color, cleanliness, strength, and freedom from defects of processing. The designations are by
odd numbers, namely, Tipo 1, 3, 5, 7, and 9. A decree, No. 14, 269, promulgating these grades
was made by the Ministerio da Agricultura, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, December 15, 1943. The
description follows:

Tipo 1.- -Fibers cream-white color, normal strength, free of impurities or processing
defects.

Tipo 3. - -Fibers cream-white color, strong, free of impurities (pectic substances) and
tangled fibers.

Tipo 5„ - -Fiber s cream color, normal strength, and free of impurities.

Tipo 7. --Fibers coarse, yellowish, greenish, or gray color and normal strength.

Tipo 9.--Fibers of greater coarseness, yellowish, greenish, or gray color, but of normal
strength.

HENEQUEN

Mexico

The Association Henequeneros de Yucatan and the government of the State of Yucatan,
taking into account the existence and customs of the international market of fibers, have classi-
fied henequen into seven classes based on length, color, cleaning, and quantity of impurities, as
shown in table 26 (120) .

110

U. S. DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE

TABLE 26. — Grades of Mexican henequen adopted by Henequeneros de Yucatan

Class

Length

Color

Cleaning

Impurities

A-A

Meters

1 or more
1 or more
75 cm. to 1

meter
75 cm. to 1

meter
60 cm. to 75 cm.
75 cm. or more
60 cm. or less

White
White
White

White

Streaky and dark

Brushed or washed

Clean

Clean
Clean

Percent
No more than 2
No more than 2
No more than 3

3 percent or more

No more than 3
No more than 3
No more than 5

B-l

M-l

Cuba

Cuba has no law or decree that establishes henequen grades. The growers acting more or
less in cooperation have established the following grades:

A - Fiber 3 feet or longer, white and not spotted.

B - Fiber shorter than 3 feet, white and not spotted.
Also fiber 3 feet or longer with some spotting.

C - All other line fiber.

All tow is of one grade and designated "tow".

MAGUEY

Philippines

Maguey-- Retted and Decorticated Maguey, whether washed
or. not in sea or fresh water --Agave cantala, Roxb.

Letter Designation Name of Grade

MR- 1 Maguey One

MR-2 Maguey Two

MR-3 Maguey Three

MR-Y Maguey Damaged

MR-O Maguey Strings

MR-T Maguey Tow

PHORMIUM

New Zealand

Standard compulsory government phormium grading regulations were introduced into New
Zealand as early as 1901. The grades as designated and described (_1_6) are:11"7

117 GREAT BRITAIN. MINISTER OF SUPPLY. CONTROL OF HEMP ORDER, 1939. (Statutory Rules and Orders 1939
No. 1004, dated Sept. 1, 1939.)

ABACA— A CORDAGE FIBER

111

Straight fiber:

Scorin?

A Superior 90-100 points

B Fine 80-89

C Good-fair 70-79

DD High-point fair 65-69

D
E
F

Tow:

Fair 60-64

Common 50-59

Rejected under 50

1st

2nd

3rd

Condemned

Stripper -slips:

1st
2nd
Condemned

"Stripper-slips" is the term applied to waste fiber produced during stripping but not carded.
Tow is waste fiber produced during scutching. The system of scoring is based on an allotment of
25 points each for stripping, scutching, color, and strength. The term "stripping" in phormium
production refers to the usual fiber separation process. After the damp, fresh fiber is dried it
may be reworked to soften and further clean it on another machine and this second process is
called the scutching.

St. Helena, Azores, and Argentina

The British "Control of Hemp Order"118 put into effect in 1939 at the beginning of World
War II to govern the trade transactions in fibers, mentioned the following grades of phormium
fiber from St. Helena, Azores, and Argentina:

St. Helena Prime
St. Helena Tiger
St. Helena J.D. & Co.
St. Helena Tow No. 1
St. Helena Tow No. 2

Azores Hemp
Azores Tow

Argentine Hemp
Argentine Tow

As the same British executive order did not list all grades of abaca and Cannabis sativa, it
is possible that there are additional recognizable grades of phormium fiber from these three
sources.

Chile

Phormium in Chile is grown and manufactured primarily by a private corporation, the
Sociedad Agricola e Industrial Formio Chileno. The plantation is at Mafil and the spinning mill
at Valdivia. The system of fiber grading is based on the system of grading the leaves, as follows:

Leaf length

Grade A or I 0 ..... . . 1. 20 meters or longer

B or II ............ 1 to 1 . 20 meters

C or III. .......................... . 75 to 1 meter

D or IV. . 50 to .75 cms.

118 See Footnote No. 117.

112 U. S. DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE

MAURITIUS (FURCRAEA GIGANTEA)

Island of Mauritius

Mauritius fiber has been graded for many years for export according to standards con-
trolled by the Mauritius Hemp Producers1 Syndicate. (8) The grades are designated: Superior,
Prime, Very good, Good, Fair, and Common. In some years small percentages are designated
"raw" or "hard. " These grades are based primarily on degree of cleaning.

Brazil

Piteira, the name by which Furcraea gigantea is known in Brazil, is graded for export
according to standards set up under Federal decree No. 14, 269 of December 15, 1943. These
are based on cleaning, strength, and defects of preparation. They are: Tipo 1, 3, 5, 7, and 9.
The decree is the same as for Brazilian sisal and the description of the standards for the
different grades are the same as described under Sisal.

CAROA

Brazil

The Ministerio da Agricultura, Rio de Janeiro, in "Decreto n. 6. 630, de 20 de dezembro
de 1940" approved a classification of standard grades of caroa described as follows:

Tipo 1. Considered of first quality, shall be of fibers 0. 80 to 1 . 70 meters in length of
white or cream-white color, of normal softness and strength, free of pectin substances and with-
out defects of preparation and absence of tangled fibers.

Tipo 3. Shall be of fibers 0. 80 to 1. 70 meters in length of white-cream or cream color
and of normal softness and strength.

Tipo 5. (Description missing in decree.)

Tipo 7. Shall be of fibers 0. 80 to 1. 70 meters in length, of yellowish color, darkened or
greenish, and normal strength.

Tipo 9. Considerable limitations. Shallbe of fibers apparently 0. 80 to 1. 70 meters in length,
of yellowish, greenish, or darkish color, and of normal strength.

PRODUCTION OF CORDAGE FIBERS BY GRADES

Frequently it is desirable to know the proportion of fiber of different grades marketed from
different cotmtries because the country of origin is an indication as to whether or not the fiber is
mainly of high or low grade. The total fiber production of a country is seldom if ever distributed
equally through the various grades. While the proportions of the total amount produced will vary
in different years because of variations in environmental factors affecting growth, economic con-
ditions, etc. , trends of production obtained by using the figures of several years should prove of
value in visualizing the production of future years unless some differences in methods of produc-
tion or classification should occur that would affect the system of growth or marketing.

ABACA

The average yearly production of Philippine abaca by grades for a ten-year period is shown
in table 27.

ABACA--A CORDAGE FIBER

TABLE 27. — Abaca yearly production (by grades)

113

Year

1925

8,54-5
0.7

8,112
0.7

2,485
0.2

1,207
0.1

1,007
0.1
171

378

142

286

564

31,549

2.6
35,298

2.8
26,179

2.1
21,294

1.5
25,697

1.6
11,101

0.9
12,201

1.1
7,961

0.9
8,634

0.7
13,338

0.9

46,865

3.9
40,397

3.3
33,768

2.7
27,017

1.9
37,923

2.4
20,604

1.6
15,752

1.5
10,963

1.3
15,468

1.3
21,358

1.5

99,123

8.2
89,421

7.2
76,433

6.2
62,721

4.5
74,978

4.7
48,720

3.8
38,466

3.5
23,815

2.7
44,648

3.6
67,338

4.7

118,023

9.8

135,717

11.0

118,156

9.6

121,201

8.7

111,475

7.0

100,914

7.9

74,508

7.0

55,236

6.3

91,055

7.4

108,605

7.5

89,921

7.4
110,726

8.9
109,156

8.9
100,233

7.2
140,506

8.8
92,412

7.3
75,750

7.1
60,705

7.0
64,103

5.2
80,469

5.6

114,080

9.4

126,957

10.3

98,151

8.0

133,837

9.7

126,881

8.0

111,574

8.8

84,273

7.9

87,991

10.1

142,981

11.6

131,564

9.1

33,909

2.8
43,972

3.5
36,321

3.0
42,619

3.1
68,631

4.3
57,683

4.5
50,327

4.7
44,580

5.1
58,409

4.8
67,708

4.7

76,014

6.2

94,480

7.6

82,108

6.7

106,694

7.7

133 853

1926

1927

1928

1929

1930

8.4
118 316

9 3

1931

90 681

8 5

1932

97 239

11 1

1933

135 319

11 0

1934

150 907

10.5

1925

127,833

10.6

130,807

10.6

134,812

11.0

138,449

10.0

127,378

8.0

135,783

10.7

68,266

6.4

76,579

8.8

110,868

9.0

136,217

9.4

37,890

3.1
40,378

3.3
30,618

2.5
38,276

2.8
47,131

3.0
39,424

3.1
26,335

2.5
28,531

3.3
38,916

3.2
45,800

3.2

120,065

9.9

84,863

6.9

77,091

6.3

110,727

8.0

168,470

10.6

166,117

13.0

104,953

9.8

70,589

8.1

101,680

8.3

115,398

8.0

24,582

2.0
86,437

7.0
94,363

6.8
77,660

4.9
65,776

5.2
58,432

5.5
28,877

3.3
53,524

4.4
49,455

3.4

85,618

7.1
59,281

4.8
54,168

4.4
60,319

4.4
60,487

3.8
44,317

3.5
68,055

6.3
43,902

5.0
61,952

5.0
68,199

4.7

16,257

1.3
47,834

3.9
57,507

4.1
69,768

4.4
68,144

5.3
41,565

3.9
23,402

2.7
35,993

2.9
41,218

2.9

53,751

4.4
31,912

2.6
33,634

2.7
36,703

2.6
33,742

2.1
26,087

2.0
34,197

3.2
21,168

2.4
36,242

3.0
33,073

2.3

18,791

1.6
18,148

1.5
25,561

2.1
29,956

2.2
20,670

1.3
18,811

1.5
19,046

1.8
7,866

0.9
10,472

0.9
14,156

1.0

13 874

1.1

1926

7,401

0.6

1927

8,126

0.7

1928

7,512

0.5

1929

8,874

0.6

1930

7,305

0.6

1931

7,999

0.7

1932

3,292

% ;.

0.4

1933

3,535

0.3

1934

6,254

0.4

114

U. S. DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE

Philippine statistics of pressings bales of individual grades of abaca during 1948, repro-
duced below, may be helpful in estimating supplies and may explain why some grades may in
some years be scarce or unobtainable ( 193) :

Grade

Non-Davao

Davao

Total

Percent

AB...
CD...

E...

F...

I...

S2..

Jl..

S3..

G...

J2..

H...

K...

LI..

L2..

Ml..

M2..

DL..

DM..,

Yl...

Y2...

Y3...

Y4...

01..,

02...

03...

Tl...

T2..,

T3...

Total.

4,591

8,867

21,423

24,452

33,892

51,489

13,926

75,649

31,299

20,035

42,750

2,878

2,479

14,475

982

195
4,461
4,606

160
72
1,594
1,042
1,088
4,521
3,187

498

1,552

13,327

38,939

33,009

38,260

13,882

41,150

4,200

7,916

4,302

216

1,678

1
684
253

993

4,027

2,037

212

4,614

10,419

34,750

63,391

66,901

89,749

27,808

116,799

35,499

28,001

47,052

3,094

2,542

16,153

1,021

196
5,145
4,859

160
72
2,587
1,047
1,088
8,548
5,224

710

3/4
1-3/4
6
11

11-1/2

15-1/2

4-3/4

20-1/4

6-1/4

8-1/4

1/2

3/8

2-3/4

1/4

7/8
3/4

3/8

1/4
1A

1-1/2

1
1/8

370,696

206,768

577,464

SISAL

Table 28 shows the distribution by grades of sisal produced in British East Africa during
the years 1943 to 1946, inclusive.

ABAGA--A CORDAGE FIBER

115

TABLE 28. — Percentages by grades in different years of total production of sisal in Kenya,

Uganda, and Tanganyika119

Grades

1943

1944

1945

1946

Kenya and Uganda:

23.20

14.98

19.65

8.49

19.60

4.27

4.66

1.57

3.58

41.64

12.61

13.07

17.47

6.29

2.35

5.90

.49

.18

26.02

10.62

19.65

7.91

23.70

3.45

4.16

1.69

2.80

41.15

13.51

13.38

17.01

6.01

2.02

5.58

.72

.62

19.23

11.18

18.37

11.05

26.36

5.06

4.08

1.33

3.34

38.46

13.65

13.41

18.54

6.91

2.32

5.33

.89

.49

14.82

11.06

2 ,

19.14

10.00

26.22

9.15

Tow 1

4.45

Tow 2

1.48

F Tow

3.68

Tanganyika :

30.41

15.89

12.37

22.22

7.90

3.84

5.49

Tow 2

1.23

F Tow

.65

119 EAST AFRICAN SISAL INDUSTRY. ANNUAL REPORT. (Proceedings at the annual meeting in Tanga
and Nairobi, 1947.)

An analysis of 258 lots of sisal (17, 504, 750 pounds) shipped from Haiti during the fourth
quarter, 1949, shows the following distribution by grades:120

Grade

Percent of total

"A" 29. 82

"X" 32. 65

"Y" 5. 38

"S" 4. 85

White Tow 37

Flume Tow 21 . 59

Other 5. 34

Total 100.00

The proportion of sisal of the different grades as reported in 1947 for the Comore Islands
by Hebert was as follows:

Grade

1st .
2nd .
3rd .

Percent of total

Total 100

HENEQUEN

The proportions of henequen of different grades produced in Yucatan in the years 1942-46,
inclusive, are shown in table 29.

120 QUARTERLY FIBER REPORT - HAITI - SISAL AND KENAF WITH REVIEW OF THE YEAR 1949. 7 pp. Report 113 of
Mar. 11, 1950 from American Embassy, Port-au-Prince, Haiti. [Unpublished.]

116

U. S. DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE

TABLE 29. — Percentages by grades in different years of total production of

henequen in Yucatan (56) (12)

Grades

1942

1943

1944

1945

1946

A..,
B...
B-l.
C...
M...
M-l,

9.5

14.5

46.4

24.5

7.1

8.6

13.5

Table 29 shows that practically 75 percent of the total production of long henequen fiber in
Yucatan comes within the two highest grades and that the proportion of fiber in the lower grades
is about the same from year to year. The table does not show the amount of cleaned bagasse pro-
duced in Yucatan, which seems to have been relatively insignificant in past years, as shown by
export figures.

MAURITIUS

The president of the Mauritius Hemp Producers' Syndicate reporting for the year 1942 (_8)
presented the tonnage of Mauritius fiber classified by different grades for the period 1933-42,
inclusive, as follows:

1933

1934

1935

1936

1937

1938

1939

1940

1941

1942

1.25
51.67
23.61
20.70

1.83
.38

%
3.39

44.51

35.44

15.87

.78

.01

61.28

27.12

9.16

1.18

1.26

63.09

25.19

4.36

.44

6.92

.31

49.96

27.88

3.81

.78

.06

17.20

58.49

38.70

.85

1.96

78.43

11.59

8.15

1.83

2.38
67.84
23.09

6.46
.23

4.00
77.25
15.05

2.79
.85

96.20

Good

3.00
.80

___

—

Hard

—

During the period 1882-1946 the annual production ranged from 242 to 3, 105 tons.

121

BALE WEIGHTS, SIZES, AND STOWAGE FACTORS OF CORDAGE FIBERS

The weight and dimensions of bales of certain cordage fibers, together with the kind and
weight of the covering and binding material of the bales, are given in table 30.

TRANSPORTATION OF CORDAGE FIBERS 123

With the exception of cotton, hemp that is grown in Wisconsin and Kentucky, and some flax
in Oregon, all of the vegetable fibers used in the United States in the production of cordage, rope,
and twine are imported from foreign countries.

Fibers arrive in the United States by ship, usually at the port of entry nearest to the factory
where they are to be converted into cordage. From the port of entry the fiber moves to the
factory by railroad, truck, lighter, or in some cases by river steamer.

Some fibers, such as istle, Tampico sisal, and Sinaloa sisal, move from their Mexican
points of origin by railroad cars across the Mexican border through to the cordage processors'
factories, but these are the only exceptions to steamer arrivals.

121 LOCK, G. W., and LEES, P. W. REPORTS ON THE MAURITIUS FIBRE INDUSTRY. Pub. 44, Colony of Mauritius, p. 45.
-1947.

3 This section was written for this monograph by an expert in the field of transportation, E. E. Bockstedt, Vice Presiuc*
in charge of traffic, Columbian Rope Company, Auburn, N. Y.

ABACA ---A CORDAGE FIBER

117

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118 U. S. DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE

THE BROKER

There are no established exchanges in the United States for vegetable fibers other than
cotton. As a result the independent broker plays an important role. Only in a few cases do the
cordage manufacturers buy their fibers direct from the fiber plantations; usually they are obtained
through brokers. Only one processor owns a plantation.

For years it has been the custom in the cordage industry to purchase supplies of fiber
through brokers, usually located in Boston, New York, San Francisco, or London, England.

The broker generally has a direct connection with the plantation owner for the sale of the
fiber that the plantation produces. The broker usually represents plantations or balers which
produce, or bale, abacas, sisals, jutes, and flaxes all over the world so that he has constant
offers coming into his office which he makes available to the cordage manufacturers by telephone
or letter in the hope of making a sale.

It will be interesting to follow an offer through a broker's office to see the functions that he
performs and the service that he renders not only to the foreign connection but also to the cordage
manufacturers in this country.

A plantation in Haiti cables to its broker authorizing him to sell 25 tons of "A" quality and
25 tons of "X" quality, Haitian machine-dried sisal for example, 16£ and 15-3/4^ per pound
landed New York, May-June shipment.

The broker makes his contacts and finally sells to a cordage processor in Bridesburg, Pa. ,
and cables to his principal to make the shipment. When the shipment is made from Haiti the
plantation cables the broker that the shipment has been made on the steamer Trajanus due New
York June 10. The plantation mails the broker the ocean bills of lading and commercial invoices
and usually draws a draft on the broker for 80 percent to 90 percent of the valuation of the ship-
ment - balance to be paid when the details of the sale are finalized.

Here are a few details to show how the broker functions:

(1) Places Marine and War Risk Insurance.

(2) Receives the shipping papers and validates the draft to the consignee.

(3) Pays the ocean freight to the steamship company.

(4) Makes the customs entry and takes delivery from the steamship company.

(5) Arranges to have each bale weighed at the port of entry.

(6) Forwards the shipment to the cordage processor.

(7) Makes claim against the steamer if packages are damaged or lost.

(8) Invoices the cordage processor at the agreed price (which includes his fee) on the
weights obtained at the port of entry.

OCEAN FREIGHT RATES ON FIBER

Ocean freight rates are generally predicated upon the space displaced in the ship, but in
some cases the rate is expressed in cents per 100 pounds and in other cases a bale rate is
expressed.

ABACA--A CORDAGE FIBER

119

The schedule below shows the rates in 1950 with approximate conversion into cents per 100

pounds.

Fiber

From

Ocean rate

Conversion
per 100 lbs.

Tampico, Mex.

New York

$14.50 per 1,000 kilos
2.2$

plus

$0.70

Vera Cruz, Mex.

New York

14.50 per 1,000 kilos
2.2%

plus

.70

Progreso, Mex.

New York

2.75 per bale of 400

lbs.

.70

Progreso, Mex.

New Orleans

2.10 per bale of 400

lbs.

.52

Havana

New York

.75 per 100

.75

Sisal

Haiti

New York

.75 per 100

.75

Haiti

New Orleans

.75 per 100

.75

Brazil

New York

30.50 per metric ton

1.50

Br. E. Africa ports

New York

20.00 per 40 cu. ft.

1.55

Port. E. Africa ports

New York

19.00 per 40 cu. ft.

1.50

Java ports

New York

21.30 per cu. meter

1.10

Cen. America
Cen. America

New York
New Orleans

1.20 per 100
1.00 per 100

1.20

1.00

Philippines

New York

6.45 per bale of 275

lbs.

2.34

Philippines

Pacific
ports

4.95 per bale of 275

lbs.

1.80

Calcutta

New York

17.00 for 40 cu. ft.

1.15

Chittagong

New York

17.00 for 40 cu. ft.

1.15

MARINE AND WAR RISK INSURANCE

It is the usual custom when making a shipment on an ocean carrier to cover the shipment
for its full value at the port of shipment plus ocean freight and, in some cases, plus contemplated
profit.

In some instances, when the market has advanced over the cost of the fiber, insurance is
placed for replacement value of the fiber so that in the event of a loss the fiber could be repur-
chased.

Marine and War Risk Insurance rates vary depending upon the length of the voyage, harbor
conditions, and hazards such as floating mines.

The attached schedule shows the difference in the rates from the various fiber-producing
countries.

120

U. S. DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE

Schedule of Rates

As of November 21, 1949

Marine

Per $100

Value

From Philippine Islands:

Direct to Atlantic U. S. via Panama . . . .
Via inter-island steamer transshipped
at Manila thence direct to U. S. Atlantic

via Panama

Direct to U. S. Pacific

Via inter-island steamer transshipped
at Manila direct to U. S. Pacific

Sisal from Haiti . . .

Hemp from Central America via Panama:

375

425
30

325

'225

East

. 25

West

. 30

From

Marine

Yucatan

New-

York

Hemp & Sisal

. 25

Yucatan

New

Orleans

. 25

Cuba

New

York

. 175

British E.

Africa

New

York

.475

Portuguese

Africa

New

York

.475

Portuguese

Africa

New

York

. 475

Tampico 1

Vera Cruzj

New

York

. 25

Java 1

Sumatra J

New

York

. 525

Calcutta

New

York

Jute

. 5125

War
Per $100
Value

. 10

. 10
. 10

. 10

.05

War

.05

05
05

15
125

WEIGHING AND TARE ALLOWANCES

When the fibers arrive at the ports of entry the broker or importer usually arranges to have
an official weigher weigh each bale, but in some cases factory weights are accepted by the seller.

Each bale is weighed and a typewritten copy of the weight notes is furnished by the broker to
support the weight as shown on the invoice. The weighing charge is paid by the broker for the
account of the seller and cost in 1950 about 7£ per 100 pounds.

Where factory weights are accepted by the seller the factory furnishes the weights to the
broker and the factory is then invoiced on this basis.

In selling jute where the bales are uniform in size only 10 percent of the shipment is weighed
and these weights are used as average weights.

Where a foreign material is used as a band or a cover on the bale an allowance is made on the
weight notes to cover the actual weight of the foreign material used for the band or cover.

Henequens from Mexico or Cuba are bound with henequen bands - no allowance.

ABACA--A CORDAGE FIBER 121

Haitian sisal and in some cases African sisal is bound with sisal bands - no tare allowance.

Java sisal, Sumatra abaca, and some African sisal is bound with heavy iron bands, in some
cases equal to 7 pounds per bale. In such cases the weigher makes actual tests of the weights of
these iron bands and makes an allowance on the weight note.

Central American abaca is packed 300 pounds net per bale, baled with iron bands but no
tare is allowed.

In some cases Philippine abaca is baled with palm leaf mats to cover the bale and rattan
bands are used as bale ties. In such cases an allowance of 4 pounds per bale is made.

Jute is bound with a jute rope bale tie and in some cases an allowance is made.

PORT OR TERMINAL CHARGES ON FIBER IN UNITED STATES PORTS

The ocean freight rate on fiber from the country of origin includes discharge on the dock and
in most cases delivery to the carrier which conveys it to the cordage factory.

From North Atlantic, South Atlantic, and Gulf ports the railroads have import railroad
freight rates from the principal ports of entry to the cordage factories and these rates include the
cost of loading the fiber in freight cars.

At the Pacific Coast ports this is not the case and only part of the loading and port charges
are absorbed by the railroads. The balance, usually about 10£ per net ton in 1950, is shown as
advance charges incurred at the port of entry.

122 U. S. DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE

LITERATURE CITED

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